A cohort study reveals that vitamin D may impact the duration of respiratory support an ICU patient receives.

“Our results suggest that vitamin D status may be a modifiable risk for prolonged duration of mechanical ventilation in surgical ICU patients. We hypothesise that ideal 25(OH)D levels are associated with optimal musculoskeletal heath, effective regulation of innate as well as adaptive immunity, and expression of endogenous antimicrobial peptides,” the researchers wrote.