Alfacalcidol Supplementation on Levator Ani Muscle Strength of Menopausal Pelvic Organ Prolapse Patients

Alfacalcidol Supplementation on Levator Ani Muscle Strength of Menopausal Pelvic Organ Prolapse Patients

This is a study performed to evaluate the role of vitamin D supplementation on the strength of levator ani muscle in menopausal women with pelvic organ prolapse

Forty eight POP women were divided into experimental and control groups in this quasi-experimental study. The experimental group was given 0.5 mcg alfacalcidol orally for three months. We measured levator ani muscle strength, serum 25-hydroxy-vitamin D3 levels, and serum Vitamin D Receptor (VDR) levels at zero months and three months preoperative. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) assessed VDR and myoblast determination protein 1 (MyoD) protein expressions in levator ani muscle surgical biopsies.

Inclusion Criteria:

• patients with pelvic organ prolapse stages III and IV who underwent surgery at menopausal age
• normal BMI
• initial serum vitamin D levels <30 ng/mL

Exclusion Criteria:

• comorbidities (chronic cough, conspitation)
• vitamin D metabolism or immune system interfering diseases or drugs specific routine medications such as anticonvulsants, statin, fibrate or orlistat
• history of vitamin D supplementation within the last month