Serum zinc level as a predictor of severity of pediatric diarrhea and its correlation with vesikari scoring system

Background: Diarrhea is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among children in the developing world. Zinc is a vital micronutrient essential for immune function and intestinal transport of water and electrolytes. Dietary zinc deficiency is common in low-income countries. Aims and Objectives: The primary objective of this study is to assess the level of serum zinc in children between 2 months and 5 years of age with diarrhea as a predictor of its severity. In addition, this study also correlates serum zinc level with the severity of diarrhea as per vesikari scoring system (VSS). Materials and Methods: A hospital-based Observational cross-sectional study was conducted over 1 year at Assam Medical College and Hospital. The 20-point VSS was used for severity scoring. Blood sample was taken for analysis of serum zinc level. Results: A total of 82 cases were enrolled. The severity of diarrhea as assessed by the VSS was moderate in 54.8% (45) of cases, mild in 18.2% (15) and severe in 26.83% (22) cases. About 84.15% (69) of cases had serum zinc levels >60 μg/dL, and the remaining 15.8% (13) had serum zinc levels <60 μg/dL. The comparison of serum zinc levels between various degrees of diarrhea, as estimated by the VSS, showed that serum zinc level decreases as the severity of diarrhea increases. Conclusion: With statistically significant values in all three categories of severity assessment by VSS (P-values of <0.001), it was concluded that serum levels of zinc are inversely proportional to the severity of diarrhea.