Effect of zinc supplementation on infants with severe pneumonia
Xiao Yuan1, Su-Yun Qian2,3, Zheng Li4
1Pediatric Department of Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
Insights
Zinc deficiency is common in infants with severe pneumonia. Supplementation normalized zinc levels but did not improve clinical outcomes in this pediatric study.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Nutritional Science
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- Pneumonia is a frequent infant respiratory infection with debated zinc supplementation benefits.
- This study examined serum zinc status in infants with severe pneumonia.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate serum zinc status in infants with severe pneumonia.
- To assess the clinical impact of zinc supplementation on infants with low serum zinc levels.
Main Methods:
- A non-blinded prospective randomized controlled trial involving 96 infants with severe pneumonia.
- Patients were grouped by serum zinc levels; low zinc group received supplementation.
- Intervention involved zinc supplementation within 48-72 hours of hospitalization.
Main Results:
- Zinc deficiency was prevalent (76.0%), particularly in 1-3 month olds.
- Zinc supplementation normalized serum zinc levels by day 12±2.
- No significant differences were observed in clinical outcomes between supplemented and control groups.
Conclusions:
- Zinc deficiency is common in infants hospitalized with severe pneumonia.
- While zinc supplementation normalized levels, it did not improve clinical outcomes in this cohort.
Background:
Pneumonia is a common respiratory infectious disease in infancy. Previous work shows controversial results on the benefit of zinc supplementation in patients with pneumonia. We conducted this study to investigate serum zinc status amongst infants with severe pneumonia and the clinical impact that zinc supplementation has on those patients with low serum zinc levels.
Methods:
This study design was a non-blinded prospective randomized controlled trial. The study is approved by the Ethics Committees of Beijing Children's Hospital. A total of 96 infants diagnosed with severe pneumonia and hospitalized in the pediatric intensive care unit between November 2011 and January 2012 were enrolled. Enrolled patients were divided into low serum zinc and normal serum zinc group. The low serum zinc group was randomized into treatment and control groups. Only the treatment group received zinc supplementation within 48-72 hours after hospitalization.
Results:
The prevalence of zinc deficiency on admission was 76.0%. The low zinc level was most apparent in infants between 1 and 3 months of age. The serum zinc level increased in the zinc treatment group and returned to a normal level (median, 53.20 μmol/L) on day 12±2. There was no statistical difference in the pediatric critic illness score, lung injury score, length of hospital stay, and duration of mechanical ventilation between the zinc treatment group and control group.
Conclusion:
Zinc deficiency is common in infants with severe pneumonia. Normalization of zinc levels with zinc supplementation did not improve clinical outcomes of infants with pneumonia.
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