Abstract:

Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the possible role of vitamin D on the clavicle fracture in the newborn. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted between 2018-2020. Infants who were admitted to neonatal intensive care unit due to the clavicle fracture were included. Infants who did not have a fracture, but were admitted to the hospital for reasons instead of exclusion criteria were included as the control group. Birth weight, height, head circumference, gender, gestational week, delivery type, other clinical findings such as brachial plexus paralysis in the infant, maternal age, number of pregnancies, risk factors time to diagnosis were recorded. According to the serum 25-OH vitamin D levels, newborns were classified as having normal vitamin D status (>30 ng/mL), vitamin D insufficient (between 20-30 ng/mL), or deficiency (<20 ng/mL). Groups were compared for the vitamin D levels, the demographics and clinical characteristics. Results: A total of 48 infants were included. The groups did not differ in terms of demographics. Age of diagnosis ranged from postnatal 1 to 6 days of life. Serum calcium levels were significantly lower in the case group. Although phosphorus and alkaline phosphatase levels did not differ between groups, vitamin D levels were significantly lower in the case group. Conclusion: This study shows that newborns with clavicle fracture had lower vitamin D levels. Cautious palpation of the clavicle can catch the fracture before the hospital discharge even there is no evident symptom and serum vitamin D level of those infants should be checked in order to detect the possible deficiency timely.