الفهرس 
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Abstract
Giardia lamblia is a protozoan parasite that is found throughout the world and is a major contributor to diarrheal disease.
Recurrent diarrhea can lead to deficiency of multivitamins including vitamin D. moreover, it was approved that there is an association between vitamin D deficiency and recurrent diarrhea specially that resulting from parasitic origin.
This is across-sectional case control study that was carried out on 300 patients with acute or chronic diarrhea, stool samples were taken from each patient to check the presence of Giardia lamblia and we found 96 stool samples positive for Giardia lamblia, we considered them as cases group, then we chose age matched 96 patients from the rest 204 negative Giardia lamblia stool samples and considered them as control group.
The patients selected from those attending Sohag University Hospital clinics between February 2021 and February 2022.
As regard demographic data of studied groups, the age of cases group ranged from 3to 63 years with a mean of 35 years. The majority of patients were 10 years of age or younger, and living in rural areas, with no significant difference between cases and control groups. There was significant male predominance in case group than in control group.
As regard Serum 25-OHvitamin D estimation, we found significant decrease in mean vitamin D level in case group than in control groups, as well as, more than half of patients suffered from vitamin D deficiency among cases group. Also, there was significant direct correlation between vitamin D level and age of patients among case group. Additionally , we found significant decrease in vitamin D level among rural residentsthan in urban residents of patients in case group.
Conclusion
Vitamin D deficiency was highly prevalent, particularly among those presented with recurrent acute and chronic diarrhea caused by Giardia lamblia infection
Young individuals, rural population as well as, male gender is liable to greater risk of vitamin D deficiency than do older adults, urban population and female gender, especially with Giardia lamblia infection.
Recommendation
We recommend further studies to be done to elucidate the mechanisms for the role of vitamin D in diarrhea caused by different etiologies, and the mechanisms which explain the effect of Giardia lamblia infection on serum vitamin D level
Randomized trials are needed to assess whether vitamin D supplementation reduces the risk of gastrointestinal morbidities experienced in children infected with Giardia lamblia.
Also we recommend to do larger multi-center research that would take large sample size, geographical and cultural differences, in order to reliably assess the impact of Giardia lamblia infection in vitamin D status.