A comparative study of the prevalence of zinc deficiency among children with acute diarrhoea in SouthWestern Nigeria.

Olufunmilola O Abolurin,Saheed B Oseni,Oyeku A Oyelami

doi:10.4314/ahs.v20i1.47

Abstract

Zinc deficiency has been associated with increased incidence, severity and duration of childhood diarrhoea. The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence of zinc deficiency among under-five children with acute diarrhoea. The study was a comparative cross-sectional study in which serum zinc levels were determined using atomic absorption spectrometry in under-five children with acute diarrhoea and in apparently healthy contols. Two hundred and fifty children with acute diarrhoea and 250 controls were studied at the Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesa, Nigeria. The diarrhoea patients had a mean ± SD serum zinc level of 78.8 ± 35.6 µg/dl, while the controls had a mean of 107.3 ± 46.8 µg/dl. The mean serum zinc level was significantly lower in the patients than the controls (t = -7.66; p < 0.001). Furthermore, the prevalence of zinc deficiency was significantly higher among the patients (30.4% versus 12.4% in the controls; OR = 3.09; 95% CI = 1.94 - 4.90; χ2 = 24.08; p < 0.001). Low social class was associated with a significantly higher prevalence of zinc deficiency among the patients (p = 0.013). Zinc deficiency is significantly associated with diarrhoea among under-five children in the study community. Hence, routine zinc supplementation should be encouraged for the treatment of diarrhoea, and availability should be ensured.

Highlights

Diarrhoeal disease represents a major public health problem, accounting for almost 10 percent of under-five deaths, with an estimated 0.6 million deaths per year globally.[1]
Children with severe undernutrition (z-score below -3 on a World Health Organization (WHO) growth chart, or presence of oedema), sepsis, sickle cell anaemia and HIV infection were excluded from the study, as these conditions have been associated with zinc deficiency.[14,15,16,17]
The prevalence of zinc deficiency among the patients in the present study suggests that zinc deficiency is quite common among children with diarrhoea in the study community

Summary

Introduction

Diarrhoeal disease represents a major public health problem, accounting for almost 10 percent of under-five deaths, with an estimated 0.6 million deaths per year globally.[1]. Objective: The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence of zinc deficiency among under-five children with acute diarrhoea. Results: The diarrhoea patients had a mean ± SD serum zinc level of 78.8 ± 35.6 μg/dl, while the controls had a mean of 107.3 ± 46.8 μg/dl. The prevalence of zinc deficiency was significantly higher among the patients (30.4% versus 12.4% in the controls; OR = 3.09; 95% CI = 1.94 – 4.90; χ2 = 24.08; p < 0.001). Low social class was associated with a significantly higher prevalence of zinc deficiency among the patients (p = 0.013). Conclusion: Zinc deficiency is significantly associated with diarrhoea among under-five children in the study community. A comparative study of the prevalence of zinc deficiency among children with acute diarrhoea in SouthWestern Nigeria.

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion