Rethinking Vitamin A Deficiency: Its Causes, Ophthalmologic Presentation, and Management Gaps at a New England Tertiary Hospital
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
3. Results
3.1. Etiology
3.2. Repeat Testing
3.3. Ocular Findings
3.4. Other Nutritional Results
3.5. Mortality
4. Discussion
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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| Etiology | Number of Patients (n = 752) | Mean Vitamin A (µg/dL) | Mean Age (years) | Sex | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female n (%) | Male n (%) | ||||
| All Liver Disease | 303 | 13.4 ± 8.4 | 60 ± 12.2 | 127 (41.9) | 176 (58.1) |
| Cirrhosis due to alcohol or HCV | 226 | 12.1 ± 7.9 | 58 ± 11.4 | 81 (35.8) | 145 (64.2) |
| MASLD | 50 | 17.2 ± 8.2 | 68 ± 9.8 | 30 (60) | 20 (40) |
| Other Liver Disease | 27 | 17.0 ± 9.6 | 66 ± 13.5 | 16 (59) | 11 (41) |
| Bariatric Surgery | 181 | 26.1 ± 5.0 | 47 ± 11.9 | 167 (92.3) | 14 (7.7) |
| Pancreatic Insufficiency | 151 | 21.8 ± 8.0 | 52 ± 19.6 | 74 (49) | 77 (51) |
| Cystic Fibrosis | 58 | 21.8 ± 8.1 | 32 ± 8.3 | 32 (55) | 26 (45) |
| Malnutrition Unspecified | 74 | 22.7 ± 8.1 | 56 ± 18.7 | 47 (64) | 27 (36) |
| Unknown/Other | 43 | 24.0 ± 8.0 | 51 ± 18.5 | 27 (63) | 16 (37) |
| p-value | <0.001 | <0.001 | <0.001 | ||
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Fearon, K.H.; Dameron, C.M.; Kelleher, S.L.; Al-Nimr, A.; Zegans, M.E. Rethinking Vitamin A Deficiency: Its Causes, Ophthalmologic Presentation, and Management Gaps at a New England Tertiary Hospital. Nutrients 2026, 18, 1310. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18081310
Fearon KH, Dameron CM, Kelleher SL, Al-Nimr A, Zegans ME. Rethinking Vitamin A Deficiency: Its Causes, Ophthalmologic Presentation, and Management Gaps at a New England Tertiary Hospital. Nutrients. 2026; 18(8):1310. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18081310
Chicago/Turabian StyleFearon, Katherine H., Corbin M. Dameron, Shannon L. Kelleher, Amer Al-Nimr, and Michael E. Zegans. 2026. "Rethinking Vitamin A Deficiency: Its Causes, Ophthalmologic Presentation, and Management Gaps at a New England Tertiary Hospital" Nutrients 18, no. 8: 1310. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18081310
APA StyleFearon, K. H., Dameron, C. M., Kelleher, S. L., Al-Nimr, A., & Zegans, M. E. (2026). Rethinking Vitamin A Deficiency: Its Causes, Ophthalmologic Presentation, and Management Gaps at a New England Tertiary Hospital. Nutrients, 18(8), 1310. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18081310

