Kennedy Chukwu Uchenna, Chukwuebuka Nduagubam Obinna, Uchenna Ekwochi
Department of Pediatrics, Enugu State University College of Medicine, Enugu, Nigeria.
Niger Med J. 2020 Nov-Dec;61(6):291-296. doi: 10.4103/nmj.NMJ_20_20. Epub 2020 Dec 19.
Despite the importance of zinc in the human body, there is paucity of data on the zinc status of Nigerian children. The aim of this study was to determine the serum zinc levels of children attending the pediatric outpatient clinic of a tertiary hospital in South East Nigeria and to assess their need for routine zinc supplementation.
One hundred children aged 5-60 months were recruited consecutively from the pediatric outpatient clinic. Their socioeconomic class (SEC) was assessed using the tool developed by Oyedeji. Physical examination was carried out to exclude malnutrition and/or liver disease. Samples were collected in the morning from nonfasting subjects and were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Serum zinc deficiency was defined as zinc level <80 μg/dl.
The overall median (range) serum zinc level was 83.3ug/dl (60-105 μg/dl) while the median (mean rank) serum zinc levels among male and female subjects were 83.4 μg/dl and 84.2ug/dl, respectively ( = 1071.00; = 0.228). A total of 26 (26%) apparently healthy children had low serum zinc levels. There was no association between gender and serum zinc levels (χ = 2.163; = 0.141). A significant positive but weak relationship was found between SEC and zinc levels ( = 0.208, = 0.038) but not between serum zinc levels and age of the children ( = 0.185, = 0.065).
A significant proportion of Under-5s could have low serum zinc levels. Routine zinc supplementation may be necessary among this age group in Nigeria.
尽管锌在人体中很重要，但关于尼日利亚儿童锌状况的数据却很匮乏。本研究的目的是测定尼日利亚东南部一家三级医院儿科门诊就诊儿童的血清锌水平，并评估他们常规补充锌的需求。
从儿科门诊连续招募了100名年龄在5至60个月的儿童。使用Oyedeji开发的工具评估他们的社会经济阶层（SEC）。进行体格检查以排除营养不良和/或肝脏疾病。早晨从非空腹受试者中采集样本，并使用原子吸收分光光度计进行分析。血清锌缺乏定义为锌水平<80μg/dl。
总体血清锌水平中位数（范围）为83.3μg/dl（60 - 105μg/dl），而男性和女性受试者的血清锌水平中位数（平均秩次）分别为83.4μg/dl和84.2μg/dl（= 1071.00；= 0.228）。共有26名（26%）看似健康的儿童血清锌水平较低。性别与血清锌水平之间无关联（χ = 2.163；= 0.141）。SEC与锌水平之间存在显著正相关但较弱的关系（= 0.208，= 0.038），但儿童血清锌水平与年龄之间无此关系（= 0.185，= 0.065）。
相当一部分5岁以下儿童可能血清锌水平较低。在尼日利亚这个年龄组中可能有必要进行常规锌补充。
