Serum zinc levels in children with acute respiratory infections: Association with sociodemography and nutritional status

Summary: Background & aims: Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI) is a global health problem. Zinc stimulates immune responses and prevents infections. The present study reports the serum zinc level in children with acute respiratory infections, and also addresses the influences of sociodemographic factors, nutritional status and health care facility on the prevalence of acute respiratory infections. Methods: The study was conducted among selected one hundred and seven ARI-children under five years of age, who were admitted into or were attending at the outpatient department of pediatrics of Dhaka Medical College Hospital. As control group, forty-five age-matched healthy non-ARI children were recruited from the same community as the ARI children belonged to. Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometric method was employed to determine the serum zinc concentration. Results: Serum zinc level was found significantly (p = 0.001) low (25.19 ± 15.49 μmol/L) in the children with ARI as compared to that (55.51 ± 31.15 μmol/L) in the control non-ARI children. Above 72%, 44% and 27% of the ARI children were estimated stunting, wasting and underweight respectively. Chi-square analysis showed that incidence of ARI was associated significantly with most of the sociodemographic parameters such as education (of father p = 0.054; of mother p = 0.01), occupation (of father p = 0.001), monthly income (p = 0.001) and children sex (p = 0.001). Nutritional status (stunting and wasting) was also associated (p = 0.001) with the prevalence of acute respiratory infections. Serum zinc values varied with corresponding sociodemograpic, nutritional and health care profile, but it were insignificant, except for occupation (of father p = 0.01). However, it was found that serum zinc level was low in the children with acute respiratory infections of illiterate and ricshawpuller fathers and in those who were living in tinshed or kacha bamboo made house. Conclusion: Serum zinc level was low in the ARI-children. Low sociodemographic factors, poor nutritional status and male children were prevalently associated with higher incidence of acute respiratory infections. Keywords: Serum zinc, Acute respiratory infections, Sociodemography, Nutritional status, Associatio