Authors: Fataki MR, Kisenge RR, Sudfeld CR, Aboud S, Okuma J, Mehta S, Spiegelman D, Fawzi WW
Citation: J. Trop. Pediatr. 2014 Apr;60(2):104-11
PMID : 24194421, Journal: J. Trop. Pediatr., 60, 2
Date created: 2014-03-28
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Zinc supplementation prevents incident pneumonia in children; however, the effect for pneumonia treatment remains unclear.
METHODS: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of zinc supplements (daily 25 mg) adjunct to antibiotic treatment of radiology-confirmed acute pneumonia was conducted among hospitalized children (6-36 months) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
RESULTS: The trial was stopped early due to low enrollment, primarily owing to exclusion of children outside the age range and >3 days of prior illness. Among children enrolled (n = 94), zinc supplementation indicated no beneficial effect on the duration of hospitalization (IRR: 0.69; 95% CI 0.45-1.06; p = 0.09) or the proportion of children who were hospitalized for <3 days (RR: 0.85; 95% CI: 0.57-1.25; p = 0.40) or <5 days (RR: 1.01; 95% CI: 0.83-1.23; p = 0.92) (IRRs and RRs >1.0 favor zinc).
CONCLUSIONS: Although underpowered, this randomized trial provided no evidence for a beneficial effect of zinc supplementation adjunct to antibiotics for hospitalized children.