Role of Zinc in Pediatric Diarrhea

Overview

Journal Indian J Pharmacol

Specialty Pharmacology

Date 2011 Jun 30

PMID 21713083

Citations 23

Authors

Chaitali Bajait

Vijay Thawani

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Zinc supplementation is a critical new intervention for treating diarrheal episodes in children. Recent studies suggest that administration of zinc along with new low osmolarity oral rehydration solutions / salts (ORS), can reduce the duration and severity of diarrheal episodes for up to three months. The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF recommend daily 20 mg zinc supplements for 10 - 14 days for children with acute diarrhea, and 10 mg per day for infants under six months old, to curtail the severity of the episode and prevent further occurrences in the ensuing -two to three months, thereby decreasing the morbidity considerably. This article reviews the available evidence on the efficacy and safety of zinc supplementation in pediatric diarrhea and convincingly concludes that zinc supplementation has a beneficial impact on the disease outcome.

Citing Articles

The impact of zinc pre-exposure on ciprofloxacin resistance development in .

Suprenant M, Ching C, Gross N, Sutradhar I, Anderson J, El Sherif N Front Microbiol. 2024; 15:1491532.

PMID: 39717277 PMC: 11663908. DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1491532.

Probiotic MTCC 5856 as adjunct therapy in children's acute diarrhea-a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Majeed M, Nagabhushanam K, Arumugam S, Chadalavada N, Seepana J, Annamalai T Front Pediatr. 2024; 11:1338126.

PMID: 38269290 PMC: 10806110. DOI: 10.3389/fped.2023.1338126.

Antiviral activity of zinc against hepatitis viruses: current status and future prospects.

Kumar S, Ansari S, Narayanan S, Ranjith-Kumar C, Surjit M Front Microbiol. 2023; 14:1218654.

PMID: 37908540 PMC: 10613677. DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1218654.

m-Follow up for zinc adherence by caretakers of children with acute watery diarrhoea: A randomized controlled trial.

Karim F, Kisenge R, Manji K PLOS Digit Health. 2023; 2(10):e0000348.

PMID: 37788258 PMC: 10547181. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pdig.0000348.

The Gut-Wrenching Effects of Cryptosporidiosis and Giardiasis in Children.

Prabakaran M, Weible L, Champlain J, Jiang R, Biondi K, Weil A Microorganisms. 2023; 11(9).

PMID: 37764167 PMC: 10538111. DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11092323.

References

Pecoud A, Donzel P, Schelling J . Effect of foodstuffs on the absorption of zinc sulfate. Clin Pharmacol Ther. 1975; 17(4):469-74. DOI: 10.1002/cpt1975174469. View

Black R, Morris S, Bryce J . Where and why are 10 million children dying every year?. Lancet. 2003; 361(9376):2226-34. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(03)13779-8. View

Roy S, Raqib R, Khatun W, Azim T, Chowdhury R, FUCHS G . Zinc supplementation in the management of shigellosis in malnourished children in Bangladesh. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2007; 62(7):849-55. DOI: 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602795. View

Hoque K, Binder H . Zinc in the treatment of acute diarrhea: current status and assessment. Gastroenterology. 2006; 130(7):2201-5. DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2006.02.062. View

Baqui A, Black R, El Arifeen S, Yunus M, Zaman K, Begum N . Zinc therapy for diarrhoea increased the use of oral rehydration therapy and reduced the use of antibiotics in Bangladeshi children. J Health Popul Nutr. 2005; 22(4):440-2. View

Lazzerini M, Ronfani L . Oral zinc for treating diarrhoea in children. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2008; (3):CD005436. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD005436.pub2. View

Trivedi S, Chudasama R, Patel N . Effect of Zinc Supplementation in Children with Acute Diarrhea: Randomized Double Blind Controlled Trial. Gastroenterology Res. 2016; 2(3):168-174. PMC: 5139709. DOI: 10.4021/gr2009.06.1298. View

Lonnerdal B . Dietary factors influencing zinc absorption. J Nutr. 2000; 130(5S Suppl):1378S-83S. DOI: 10.1093/jn/130.5.1378S. View

Berni Canani R, Cirillo P, Buccigrossi V, Ruotolo S, Passariello A, De Luca P . Zinc inhibits cholera toxin-induced, but not Escherichia coli heat-stable enterotoxin-induced, ion secretion in human enterocytes. J Infect Dis. 2005; 191(7):1072-7. DOI: 10.1086/428504. View

10.

Kosek M, Bern C, Guerrant R . The global burden of diarrhoeal disease, as estimated from studies published between 1992 and 2000. Bull World Health Organ. 2003; 81(3):197-204. PMC: 2572419. View

11.

Scrimgeour A, Lukaski H . Zinc and diarrheal disease: current status and future perspectives. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2008; 11(6):711-7. DOI: 10.1097/MCO.0b013e3283109092. View

12.

Robberstad B, Strand T, Black R, Sommerfelt H . Cost-effectiveness of zinc as adjunct therapy for acute childhood diarrhoea in developing countries. Bull World Health Organ. 2004; 82(7):523-31. PMC: 2622915. View

13.

Patel A, Mamtani M, Dibley M, Badhoniya N, Kulkarni H . Therapeutic value of zinc supplementation in acute and persistent diarrhea: a systematic review. PLoS One. 2010; 5(4):e10386. PMC: 2860998. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0010386. View

14.

Hoque K, Rajendran V, Binder H . Zinc inhibits cAMP-stimulated Cl secretion via basolateral K-channel blockade in rat ileum. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol. 2004; 288(5):G956-63. DOI: 10.1152/ajpgi.00441.2004. View

15.

Sachdev H, Mittal N, Yadav H . Oral zinc supplementation in persistent diarrhoea in infants. Ann Trop Paediatr. 1990; 10(1):63-9. DOI: 10.1080/02724936.1990.11747411. View

16.

Fischer Walker C, Fontaine O, Young M, Black R . Zinc and low osmolarity oral rehydration salts for diarrhoea: a renewed call to action. Bull World Health Organ. 2009; 87(10):780-6. PMC: 2755312. DOI: 10.2471/blt.08.058990. View

17.

Bhutta Z, Bird S, Black R, Brown K, Gardner J, Hidayat A . Therapeutic effects of oral zinc in acute and persistent diarrhea in children in developing countries: pooled analysis of randomized controlled trials. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000; 72(6):1516-22. DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/72.6.1516. View