Abstract

Objectives
This study aimed to objectively assess mean serum zinc levels and influence of age, gender and primary etiology of chronic liver disease (CLD) on these levels in a sample of Pakistani pediatric patients with decompensated CLD (DCLD)
Methodology: It was a cross-sectional survey carried out at Combined Military Hospital, Lahore, from August 2013 to February 2014. Through non-probability consecutive sampling we included 100 cases belonging to both genders, fitting in the age-range of 1 – 12 years and having DCLD based on Child-Pugh classification score ≥ 6. Patients with diarrhea, respiratory or urinary tract infection, liver tumors or receiving treatments with immune suppressants, antifungals, antivirals and zinc supplementation were excluded.
Results
After exclusion, off 74 cases, 58.1% were male. Majority belonged to the age group of 6 – 12 years (54.1%). Idiopathic DCLD was the most prevalent primary etiology (40.5%). Mean serum zinc levels (44.5 ± 4.7µg/dL) were significantly lower (p< 0.001) than the minimum normal serum zinc levels (65 µg/dL). The mean serum zinc levels were lower significantly in children with idiopathic CLD as the primary etiology (p=0.012) and insignificantly in females and children belonging to the age group of 1- < 6 years (p= 0.08 and p= 0.59 respectively)
Conclusion
Mean serum zinc levels in our sample of pediatric patients with DCLD were significantly lower than the reference values for normal children, were lowest in children suffering from idiopathic CLD and were not dependent on gender and age.

Key words: Children, chronic liver disease, Pakistan, zinc levels.