Nasrin Dilruba, Larson Charles P, Sultana Samina, Khan Toslim U
Health Systems and Infectious Diseases Division, ICDDR,B: Centre for Health and Population Research, GPO Box 128, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh.
J Health Popul Nutr. 2005 Sep;23(3):215-21.
Zinc treatment is now recommended by the World Health Organization as part of the routine management of acute childhood diarrhoea. A dispersible zinc tablet formulation was developed taking into account the taste, cost, and feasibility to distribute and store. Only limited information is available on the acceptability of and adherence to dispersible zinc tablet. No study has formally assessed whether the formulation is acceptable to children and if caretakers can adhere to the instructions regarding preparation, dosage, and duration of treatment. This community-based study aimed at determining the acceptability of and adherence to a dispersible zinc tablet formulation in a cohort of children (n=320) aged less than five years. Caretakers of children with acute childhood diarrhoea were prescribed zinc tablet treatment and followed up after 2-3 weeks. The formulation was acceptable to children; 90.1% of 303 caretakers perceived that the tablets were equally or even more acceptable to their children compared to other medicines. Ninety-eight percent of the children received the standard dose of one tablet per day, and 55.8% completed the full 10-day course of zinc treatment. Adherence rates did not vary by age or gender of the child. These findings indicate that the tablet formulation is acceptable, but further efforts are required to enhance adherence.
锌治疗现已被世界卫生组织推荐为儿童急性腹泻常规管理的一部分。考虑到口味、成本以及分发和储存的可行性，研发了一种可分散片剂配方。关于可分散片剂的可接受性和依从性，仅有有限的信息。尚无研究正式评估该配方是否为儿童所接受，以及看护人是否能够遵循关于制备、剂量和治疗持续时间的说明。这项基于社区的研究旨在确定一组五岁以下儿童（n = 320）对可分散片剂配方的可接受性和依从性。为患有儿童急性腹泻的儿童的看护人开了锌片治疗处方，并在2至3周后进行随访。该配方为儿童所接受；303名看护人中，90.1%认为该药片与其孩子服用的其他药物相比，孩子同样能接受甚至更能接受。98%的儿童每天服用标准剂量的一片药，55.8%的儿童完成了为期10天的锌治疗全疗程。依从率不因儿童的年龄或性别而有所不同。这些发现表明该片剂配方是可接受的，但仍需进一步努力提高依从性。
