Duration Of Common Cold Research Articles

Response: Commentary: Quantile treatment effect of zinc lozenges on common cold duration: a novel approach to analyze the effect of treatment on illness duration.

Response: Commentary: Quantile treatment effect of zinc lozenges on common cold duration: a novel approach to analyze the effect of treatment on illness duration.

The impact of cineole treatment timing on common cold duration and symptoms: Non-randomized exploratory clinical trial.

Common cold (CC) symptoms arise from an inflammatory response treatable with cineole and generally peak within two days, which complicates research implementation. We therefore explored the benefits of early cineole administration with enrolment of participants prior to CC onset. Out of 522 adults enrolled in our phase IV, open-label, non-randomized, exploratory clinical trial (EudraCT No. 2020-000860-51), 329 developed a CC and used 200 mg cineole (Soledum®, CNL-1976) t.i.d. for max. 15 (± 2) days. Primary endpoint was burden of disease based on the Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey (WURSS-11). Comparing three strata based on time to treatment (≤ 12 h, > 12 to ≤ 24 h and > 24 h), earliest treatment resulted in lowest AUC-WURSS (Spearman correlation coefficient of 0.36) and reduced the overall burden of disease by 38% (p < 0.0001). Earlier and lower symptom severity peak resulted, with shorter time to remission (average 8.9 vs. 10.7 days with latest treatment initiation, p < 0.05), and higher and faster recovering quality of life (p < 0.05). Tolerability was mostly rated as "very good", with adverse events of suspected causal relationship reported in 4.3% of participants. Early intervention shows clinical benefits relevant for the effective treatment of CC with cineole.

Vitamin C reduces the severity of common colds: a meta-analysis

BackgroundRandomized trials have shown that vitamin C shortens the duration of common colds. Some trials reported greater effects on severe cold symptoms compared with mild symptoms. This review systematically compares the effects of vitamin C on severe and mild common cold symptoms.MethodsWe included all placebo-controlled trials of orally administered vitamin C in doses of at least 1 g/day for the common cold for people in good health at baseline. The analysis was restricted to trials which reported both the total duration of the common cold, and the severity of the common cold measured using severity scales, the duration of more severe stages of the cold, or proxies for severe colds such as days indoors. Findings were pooled using the inverse variance, fixed effect options of the metacont function of the R package meta to calculate the ratio of means estimate.ResultsFifteen comparisons from 10 trials which reported both mild and severe symptoms were identified. All trials were randomized and double-blind. Compared to placebo, vitamin C significantly decreased the severity of the common cold by 15% (95% CI 9–21%). The direct comparison of the effect of vitamin C on mild and severe symptoms was limited to five comparisons which found that vitamin C had a significant benefit on the duration of severe symptoms. In this subset, there was a significant difference in the size of the effect of vitamin C on the overall duration of colds versus the duration of severe colds (P = 0.002), and vitamin C had no significant effect on the duration of mild symptoms.ConclusionsThe common cold is the leading cause of acute morbidity and a major cause of absenteeism from work and school. However, absenteeism is dependent on the severity of symptoms. The finding that vitamin C may have a greater effect on more severe measures of the common cold is therefore important. Further research on the therapeutic effects of vitamin C on the common cold should measure outcomes of differing levels of severity.

HUBUNGAN ANTARA DURASI BATUK PILEK DENGAN KEMAMPUAN MOTORIK KASAR PADA ANAK-ANAK

Background: Common cold often seen as a trivial disease, but for babies as well as children under 5 old, this disease can cause more severe cases, one of which is a decrease in gross motor skill. Even though children’s motor skill is fundamental for the next life. Purpose: The purpose of this study whether there is a relationship between the duration of a common cold and gross motor skill in children. Methods: This study used a cross-sectional study design with a population is all of children with common cold case, age 2 mounths-5 years at Fisioterapi Center and Baby Spa Atik Hidayati Clinic. The sample in this study amounted to 62 respondents who were taken using the accidental sampling technique. The instruments used were common cold questionnaire and ASQ-3 and then analyzed it by univariate and bivariate using the Spearman’s Rho correlation test. Results: The results of the bivariate analysis showed tata there was no relationship between the duration of common cold and gross motor skill Sig. (2-tailed) 0,226. Most of respondents was at age of 2 months-1 years (40,3%), most of them (53,3%) ere male. The duration of common cold was dominated by acute duration (85,5%) with 83.9% gross motor skill above average. Conclusion: This study has not been able to show a relationship between the duration of a common cold and gross motor skill in children.

Commentary: Quantile treatment effect of zinc lozenges on common cold duration: A novel approach to analyze the effect of treatment on illness duration.

GENERAL COMMENTARY article Front. Pharmacol., 06 April 2023Sec. Drugs Outcomes Research and Policies Volume 14 - 2023 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2023.1152305

Effect of prenatal and postnatal exposure to home renovation on the risk of common cold in preschool children.

Common cold is usually considered to be associated with outdoor climate, but the evidence linking with indoor environmental factors is lacking. The role of indoor renovations during which critical timing window on childhood common cold remains unclear. Therefore, we investigated the effect of exposure to new furniture and/or redecoration during prenatal and postnatal periods on the occurrence and duration of common cold in preschool children. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 39782 children aged 3-6years in seven cities of China. The occurrence and duration of common cold in children, and their lifetime exposures to indoor new furniture and redecoration (including pregnancy, the first year of life, and after one year old) were assessed using a questionnaire administered by the parents. Associations between high frequency (>5 colds) and long duration (≥2weeks per cold) of common cold during past 12 months and exposure to indoor new furniture/redecoration were examined by logistic regression models in terms of odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). We found that the prevalence of high frequency and long duration of common cold in preschool children in China were, respectively, 9.2% and 11.9%. Frequent common cold was significantly associated with exposure to indoor new furniture/redecoration during pregnancy, first year, and after 1 year old, respectively, with the ORs (95% CI)=1.25 (1.12-1.39), 1.11 (1.00-1.25), and 1.09 (1.01-1.18). Furthermore, childhood long duration per cold was associated with exposure to indoor new furniture/redecoration during pregnancy with OR (95% CI) of 1.14 (1.03-1.25) but not with postnatal exposure. We identified that prenatal exposure to home renovation was more critical than postnatal exposure for an increased risk of high frequency and long duration of common cold. Sensitivity analysis showed that the association between prenatal exposure to indoor renovations and the risk of childhood common cold was consistent and robust, and the associations were modified by some personal and indoor environmental factors. Our findings indicated that prenatal and postnatal exposure to home renovation played an important role in the risk of childhood common cold, supporting the hypothesis of "fetal origin of childhood infection."

Quantile Treatment Effect of Zinc Lozenges on Common Cold Duration: A Novel Approach to Analyze the Effect of Treatment on Illness Duration.

Calculation of the difference of means is the most common approach when analyzing treatment effects on continuous outcomes. Nevertheless, it is possible that the treatment has a different effect on patients who have a lower value of the outcome compared with patients who have a greater value of the outcome. The estimation of quantile treatment effects (QTEs) allows the analysis of treatment effects over the entire distribution of a continuous outcome, such as the duration of illness or the duration of hospital stay. Furthermore, most of these outcomes have asymmetric distributions with fat tails, and censored observations are not uncommon. These features can be accounted for in the analysis of the QTE. In this paper, we use the QTE approach to analyze the effect of zinc lozenges on common cold duration. We use the data set of the Mossad (1996) trial with zinc gluconate lozenges, and three data sets of trials with zinc acetate lozenges. In the Mossad (1996) trial, zinc gluconate lozenges shortened common cold duration on average by 4.0 days (95% CI 2.3–5.7 days). However, the QTE analysis indicates that 15- to 17-day colds were shortened by 8 days, and 2-day colds by just 1 day, for the group taking zinc lozenges. Thus, the overall 4.0-day average effect of zinc gluconate lozenges in the Mossad (1996) trial is inconsistent with our QTE findings for both short and long colds. Similar results were found in our QTE analysis of the pooled data sets of the three zinc acetate lozenge trials. The average effect of 2.7 days (95% CI 1.8–3.3 days) was inconsistent with the effects on short and long colds. The QTE approach may have broad usefulness for examining treatment effects on the duration of illness and hospital stay, and on other similar outcomes.

Rhinothermy delivered by nasal high flow therapy in the treatment of the common cold: a randomised controlled trial

BackgroundThe common cold is the most common infectious disease affecting humans and has a substantial economic impact on society. Human rhinoviruses, which cause almost two-thirds of colds, have demonstrated temperature-dependent...

The efficacy of a compounded micronutrient supplement on the incidence, duration, and severity of the common cold: A pilot randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial.

PurposeViral upper respiratory infections are associated with significant health and economic impact. This study sought to determine the efficacy of routine immune system micronutrient supplementation on the incidence, duration and severity of common cold symptoms.MethodsThis pilot study was a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial of N = 259 with asymptomatic participants aged 18 to 65 in two cold seasons of 2016 and 2017. The treatment group received an immune system targeted micronutrient caplet, while the placebo group received a micronized cellulose caplet externally identical to the treatment caplet. Weekly surveys were sent electronically to participants to document common cold incidence, duration and severity. Primary statistical results were obtained using mixed-effects logistic regressions to account for longitudinal measurements for participants.ResultsThe odds of acquiring an upper respiratory infection, adjusted for potential confounders, was estimated to be 0.74 times lower in the treatment group (p = 0.14). The odds of reporting specific symptoms were statistically lower in the treatment arm compared to the placebo arm for runny nose (OR = 0.53, p = 0.01) and cough (OR = 0.51, p = 0.04). Shorter durations of runny nose and cough were also observed in the treatment arm compared to placebo (both p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in severity of symptoms in either group. The observed proportion of reported cold symptoms in the treatment group was lower compared to the placebo group between late January and February in two consecutive cold seasons. Given the physical, workplace and economic impact of upper respiratory infections, this low cost and low risk intervention should be further studied with more robust investigation and meticulous experimental design.

The effects of Sambucus nigra berry on acute respiratory viral infections: A rapid review of clinical studies

Brief overviewCollectively the evidence obtained from across five clinical studies involving 936 adults indicate that mono-herbal preparations of Sambucus nigra L. berry (S.nigra), when taken within 48 hours of the onset of acute respiratory viral infection, may reduce the duration and severity of common cold and influenza symptoms in adults. There is currently no evidence to support the use of S.nigra berry for the treatment or prevention of COVID-19. Given the body of evidence from preclinical studies demonstrating the antiviral effects of S.nigra berry, alongside the results from clinical studies involving influenza viral infections included in this review, pre-clinical research exploring the potential effects of S.nigra berry on COVID-19 are encouraged. VerdictThe evidence included in this review is mostly derived from clinical studies involving adult participants and examining short-term use of commercial formulations of S.nigra berry for up to 16 days. Findings from included studies suggest that mono-herbal preparations of S.nigra berry (in extract or lozenge formulation) may reduce influenza-type symptoms, including fever, headache, nasal congestion and nasal mucous discharge in adults, when taken within the first 48 hours of symptom onset. Within 2–4 days of S.nigra treatment, most adult participants experienced significant symptom reduction, by an average of 50%. Evidence regarding the effectiveness of S.nigra berry on the symptom of cough, and need for/use of medicines (including antibiotics) to treat acute respiratory infections, is currently unclear and inconsistent. Adverse events were rare with no serious events reported. Adverse events, reported in two studies, were more common in comparators than in treatments. There is currently no reliable or sufficient scientific evidence to support the use of S.nigra in pregnant or lactating women.

Zinc Supplementation Reduces Common Cold Duration among Healthy Adults: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials with Micronutrients Supplementation.

.The common cold had resulted in significant economic and social burden worldwide. The effect of vitamin C on preventing common cold in healthy adults has been investigated extensively, but not that of other micronutrients. Thus, we aim to assess the effects of providing micronutrients singly through oral means, on cold incidence, and/or management (in terms of cold duration and symptom severity) in healthy adults from systematically searched randomized controlled trials. From four electronic databases, 660 identified studies were screened and data were extracted from 20 studies (zinc, 10; vitamin D, 8; and vitamins A and E, 2). The quality of selected studies was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool and certainty in the outcomes was assessed with the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach. The review found that micronutrients supplementation, except vitamin C, may not prevent cold incidence or reduce symptom severity among healthy adults. However, zinc supplementation was observed to potentially reduce cold duration by 2.25 days (when zinc is provided singly, 95% CI: −3.39, −1.12). This suggests that zinc supplementation may reduce the overall burden due to common cold among healthy adults.

Association between indoor environment and common cold among children aged 7–9 years in five typical cities in China

The common cold is an acute, self-limited viral infection of the upper respiratory tract, it is a heterogeneous group of diseases caused by numerous viruses that belong to several different families. A total of 292 households with children aged 7–9 years from Harbin, Xi’an, Ningbo, Nanning, and Shenzhen, China were investigated and 877 air samples from both bedrooms and living rooms in study area were tested to reveal indoor air quality level in 2017. The mean indoor temperature, relative humidity, CO, CO 2 , NO 2 , formaldehyde, total count of colonies, and total count of fungi levels were 21.00 ​± ​4.05 ​°C, 54.66 ​± ​16.28%, 0.85±+2.99 mg/m 3 , 0.08 ​± ​0.06%, 0.03 ​± ​0.02 ​mg/m 3 , 0.03 ​± ​0.02 ​mg/m 3 , 173.14 ​± ​4.28 ​cfu/m 3 , and 241.21 ​± ​4.20 ​cfu/m 3 , respectively. Of the 292 children, 1.72% had >5 common colds in the past year, 12.04% 3–5 per year, and rest <3 per year. The average prevalence of the common cold in five cities was 1.68 times per year with an average duration of 5.62 days. The main symptoms of a common cold in children are cough and expectoration, which are significantly influenced by indoor relative humidity, formaldehyde, and total count of fungi. The total count of fungi as well as relative humidity are also significantly correlated with the duration of children common cold. And significant correlation was found between indoor temperature and the prevalence of a common cold. This study systematically analyzed influence of indoor environment, including physical variables, chemical variables, and biological variables, on common cold in children and identified essential indoor risk factors in China. • The average prevalence of the common cold in five typical cities in China was 1.68 times per year with an average duration of 5.62 days. •The main symptoms of a common cold in children are cough and expectoration. •The main symptoms, duration, and prevalence of a common cold in children are significantly influenced by indoor temperature, relative humidity, formaldehyde, and total count of fungi. •The socioeconomic status (SES) of the family affects indoor environment as well as respiratory health status of the child to some extent.

What is the optimal intake of vitamin C?

AbstractVitamin C is an essential nutrient which humans cańt produce. Vitamin C has many important functions in the body, such as immune-system stimulation, growth and repair of tissue, sustain cardiovascular and bone health and protecting cells from oxidative stress by neutralizing harmful free radicals.To ensure adequate vitamin C levels intake recommendations are set.A minimum of 10 mg/ day is needed to prevent scurvy, the clinical manifestation of vitamin C deficiency. Some countries like UK and Australia and the FAO/WHO* refer to this and set recommendations of 40–45 mg/day including a safety margin.Later findings showed that vitamin C is essential for further functions, especially for the immune system. In addition, kinetic studies in healthy men showed that the saturation of neutrophil leukocytes and plasma needs higher vitamin C intakes. Based on the content parameters of plasma level, neutrophil saturation, and minimal urinary loss, the intake recommendations were increased in some countries. The IoM (US) increased the vitamin C recommendations (RDA) to 90 mg and 75 mg/ day and EFSA to 110 mg and 95 mg/ day for men and women, respectively.It´s recommended to define intake recommendations based on functional parameters because vitamin C levels should be at a level that assures optimal functioning of all processes requiring vitamin C. Lack of overt deficiency does not necessarily indicate adequacy of intake. Up to now no sufficient evidence exists for a functional parameter.Recent science from an in-vitro and a human intervention study in healthy men investigated the effects of vitamin C on the leukocyte function. The results support neutrophil motility as a suitable functional parameter. The observed effects indicate to increase the intake recommendation to 200 mg/ day for healthy persons. This is in line with established knowledge from pharmacokinetic, observational, and intervention studies. Plasma vitamin C saturation occurs at a daily intake of 200 mg/ day and a recent review showed that supplementation of at least 200 mg/ day reduced the duration of common cold significantly in children as well as in adults. Additionally, it could be shown that incidences of cardiovascular disease were lowest with vitamin C intakes of at least 200 mg/ day.These findings indicate that an increase of current intake recommendations to 200 mg/ day would be beneficial for the function of the immune system, thus for human health.

Protocol for a randomised, single-blind, two-arm, parallel-group controlled trial of the efficacy of rhinothermy delivered by nasal high flow therapy in the treatment of the common cold

IntroductionThe common cold is the most common infectious disease affecting humans. It is usually a self-limiting disease; however, the common cold can cause significant morbidity and has a substantial economic...

Healthy-Sustainable Housing Index: A Pilot Study to Link Architecture and Public Health in a Semi-Urban Community in Mexico.

The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the link between housing and children´s respiratory symptoms, through the construction of an index (HSHI) based on the definition of healthy-sustainable housing criteria, in a semi-urban community from Morelos, Mexico. A general and household questionnaire, and respiratory symptoms diary were applied in 60 households to gather information about schoolchildren, respiratory health, housing and lifestyle characteristics. HSHI was constructed using principal component analysis. The association between HSHI and the presence and duration of respiratory symptoms was assessed using logistic and Poisson regression models. HSHI had five components, which accounted for 63% of variance, and were classified into poor and sufficient quality. It was observed that schoolchildren who inhabit a sufficient-quality house, showed a reduction in nose irritation duration and in the allergic symptoms probability regarding component 1 (ventilation, lighting and cloth washing) and presented three times less duration of common cold by component 2 (construction material, painted walls inside the house and type of bathroom) compared to poor-quality house inhabitants. Our results suggest that living in a sufficient-quality house, as described by the HSHI, reduced the prevalence of wheezing episodes and the probability of ear pain, providing evidence about the positive association of a healthy-sustainable housing on the respiratory health of schoolchildren.

Relationship between indoor environment and children's common cold in Baotou, Inner Mongolia

The common cold is the most common disease in children and is associated with viruses, bacterial infections and low immunity in children. As a susceptible population, children are very sensitive to the common cold. The survey shows that children have an average of 6−8 times a year, usually lasting 7 to 15 days. However, there are few studies in this area in China. This paper discusses the relationship between the indoor environment in Baotou City and the preschool children’s cold. This study is part of the China, Children, Homes, Health (CCHH) program, which aims to identify indoor risk factors associated with asthma and allergies in children. From March to July 2014, a cross-sectional study was conducted on 4709 children aged 3−7 years (74.0% response rate) randomly selected from 37 kindergartens in Baotou City. We found that a total of 4.8% had a high frequency (>5 colds per year) and 6.1% had long duration (≥2 weeks) of common cold in Baotou. A Chi-square test was used for univariate analysis of common cold-related risk factors. A P -value <0.05 was considered as significant. All statistical analysis was performed by SPSS 20.0. Low age children had more common cold than high age children ( P <0.05). Children who received antibiotics and had a family history of allergies had more colds and longer durations ( P <0.001). We analyzed the association between indoor exposure and the common cold. These associations were performed by multiple logistic regression after adjusting for six covariates, including gender, age, family allergy history, breastfeeding, birth patterns, and smoking environment. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were calculated for the logistic regression models. Family allergy history and exposure to condensation were associated with frequent common cold and long duration of common cold. However, bedding that is often exposed to sunlight is negatively correlated with frequent colds (aOR, 95% CI: 0.67, 0.58 to 0.79) and prolonged colds (aOR, 95% CI: 0.59, 0.40 to 0.87). Family history of allergies and contact condensation may be a risk factor for the common cold, and exposure to bedding from the sun may be a protective factor. This study shows that in Baotou, the indoor environment and lifestyle of modern apartments are related to the frequency of the common cold in children and the duration of the cold. To prevent a child from catching a cold, it is important to reduce signs of moisture and often expose the bedding to the sun. Further follow-up studies of indoor environment could verify more about the influence of environmental exposure on the children’s health.

What are the effects of vitamin C on the duration and severity of the common cold?

The common cold causes great morbidity throughout the world and there are no effective therapeutic agents against it. There is a belief that consuming vitamin C during a cold episode would help reduce duration and severity of symptoms. However, there is controversy about this claim. To answer this question we used Epistemonikos, the largest database of systematic reviews in health, which is maintained by screening multiple information sources, including MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane, among others. We extracted data from the systematic reviews, reanalyzed data of primary studies, conducted a meta-analysis and generated a summary of findings table using the GRADE approach. We identified four systematic reviews that included eight primary studies overall, of which seven were randomized trials. We concluded vitamin C has minimal or no impact on the duration of common cold or in the number of days at home or out of work.

Self-Care for Common Colds: The Pivotal Role of Vitamin D, Vitamin C, Zinc, and Echinacea in Three Main Immune Interactive Clusters (Physical Barriers, Innate and Adaptive Immunity) Involved during an Episode of Common Colds-Practical Advice on Dosages and on the Time to Take These Nutrients/Botanicals in order to Prevent or Treat Common Colds.

Maintaining a normal healthy immune defense system lowers the incidence and/or the severity of symptoms and/or the duration of common cold (CC). Physical barriers and innate and adaptive immunity have been involved during a CC episode. Vitamins C and D, zinc, and Echinacea have evidence-based efficacy on these immune system barriers. This review includes 82 eligible studies to consider the preventive role of these nutrients in immune clusters and in CC to provide advice on dosage and assumption of these nutrients. Regarding vitamin C, regular supplementation (1 to 2 g/day) has shown that vitamin C reduces the duration (in adults by 8%, in children by 14%) and the severity of CC. Considering zinc, the supplementation may shorten the duration of colds by approximately 33%. CC patients may be instructed to try zinc within 24 hours of onset of symptoms. As for vitamin D, the supplementation protected against CC overall, considering baseline levels and age. Patients with vitamin D deficiency and those not receiving bolus doses experienced the most benefit. Regarding Echinacea, prophylactic treatment with this extract (2400 mg/day) over 4 months appeared to be beneficial for preventing/treating CC. In conclusion, the current evidence of efficacy for zinc, vitamins D and C, and Echinacea is so interesting that CC patients may be encouraged to try them for preventing/treating their colds, although further studies are needed on this topic.

Home dampness-related exposures increase the risk of common colds among preschool children in Shanghai, China: Modified by household ventilation

Few studies have estimated the effects of dampness-related exposures and its interaction effects with poor household ventilation on common colds of preschool children. During April 2011–April 2012, we conducted a cross-sectional survey on home environment and childhood health and collected 13,335 parents-reported questionnaires of 4–6 year-old children in Shanghai, China. In this paper, we investigated associations between the incidence and duration of common colds among these children during the past 12 months before the survey and frequency of opening windows, as well as household dampness-related exposures (indicated by six dampness indicators). Significantly higher incidence (≥3 times) and longer duration (≥2 weeks) of common cold were found among children with than without these dampness exposures (p-value <0.01 for mold spots and p-value <0.001 for all other indicators). The number of dampness-related indicators had a positive and strong dose-response relationship with common colds (p-trend <0.01). Low frequency of ventilation was also a risk factor for children common colds. After adjusted for the potential confounders in the multiple logistic regression analyses, all dampness-related indicators were significantly associated with the increased odds of common colds and the highest odds ratios was 1.21 (95% CI: 1.16–1.27). We also found that dampness-related exposures and household ventilation habits (p-value for interaction <0.001) had a strong interaction effect on the incidence and duration of common cold. The stratified analysis of ventilation condition displays that the influence of dampness-related exposures has been modified by ventilation. Therefore, good household ventilation habits may have an effect of modification for dampness-related exposures.

Zinc lozenges and the common cold: a meta-analysis comparing zinc acetate and zinc gluconate, and the role of zinc dosage.

ObjectiveTo compare the efficacy of zinc acetate lozenges with zinc gluconate lozenges in common cold treatment and to examine the dose-dependency of the effect.DesignMeta-analysis.SettingPlacebo-controlled zinc lozenge trials, in which the zinc dose was > 75 mg/day. The pooled effect of zinc lozenges on common cold duration was calculated by using inverse-variance random-effects method.ParticipantsSeven randomised trials with 575 participants with naturally acquired common colds.Main outcome measureDuration of the common cold.ResultsThe mean common cold duration was 33% (95% CI 21% to 45%) shorter for the zinc groups of the seven included trials. Three trials that used lozenges composed of zinc acetate found that colds were shortened by 40% and four trials that used zinc gluconate by 28%. The difference between the two salts was not significant: 12 percentage points (95% CI: −12 to + 36). Five trials used zinc doses of 80–92 mg/day, common cold duration was reduced by 33%, and two trials used zinc doses of 192–207 mg/day and found an effect of 35%. The difference between the high-dose and low-dose zinc trials was not significant: 2 percentage points (95% CI: −29 to + 32).ConclusionsProperly composed zinc gluconate lozenges may be as effective as zinc acetate lozenges. There is no evidence that zinc doses over 100 mg/day might lead to greater efficacy in the treatment of the common cold. Common cold patients may be encouraged to try zinc lozenges for treating their colds. The optimal lozenge composition and dosage scheme need to be investigated further.