Estimation of Serum Zinc and Copper in Children with Acute Diarrhea

Abstract

Diarrhoea is a disease related to nutrition as it involves the loss of fluid and electrolytes. The death rate in children due to diarrhoea is high because of undernutrition, even if they are well-hydrated. In this examination, we sought out the concentrations of copper and zinc in the serum of children diseased with acute diarrhoea, before and after the therapy of standard ORS (oral rehydration solution) therapy and associated it with the severity of diarrhoea and its period. Children involved in the examination were 110 in number, who were diseased with acute diarrhoea. The concentrations of zinc and copper in the serum of children with acute diarrhoea were noted before (at the time of entrance) and after treating them with standard oral rehydration solution (ORS) therapy. This research showed that the levels of zinc and copper in the serum of children diseased with acute diarrhoea, declined significantly to 13% and 12.8%, respectively, from their normal serum concentrations. After treatment with ORS therapy, a further decrease of 22.4% and 22.6% is seen in the concentration of zinc and copper, respectively. Our research showed that the children who were having a very low level of zinc and copper in the plasma were more prone to be diseased with acute diarrhoea and even more severely and with longer duration.