Zinc status in women with recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis

Zinc status has been shown to influence various cell-mediated immunologic mechanisms. These cell-mediated mechanisms are important in preventing mucocutaneous infections caused by Candida albicans. This study evaluated the relationship between zinc status and recurrent vaginal candidiasis by comparing plasma and erythrocyte zinc in 29 patients with recurrent vaginal candidiasis and 20 control subjects matched for age, race, and parity. The results indicated that there was a significantly lower level of plasma zinc in women with recurrent vaginal candidiasis (81 + 11.6 mg/dl) than in the control subjects (91 +/- 14.2 mg/dl) with a significant value of p = 0.015. These differences in plasma zinc levels were even greater when adjusted for dietary zinc and supplemental zinc with the use of analyses of covariance. No differences in erythrocyte zinc measurements were found between the two groups. These results suggest that mild zinc deficiency is associated with recurrent vaginal candidiasis and may play a role in the susceptibility of women to recurrent vaginal candidiasis.