Abstract |
Serum zinc was measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry in sixty-five children with atopic eczema and seventy-nine control children. The mean serum zinc of the patients, (11.4 +/- 2.0 mumol/l) was significantly lower than that of the controls (13.7 +/- 2.3 mumol/l, P less than 0.0001). There was no significant correlation between the patients' serum zinc concentration and either the height/weight centile or a subjective assessment of severity and extent of the eczema. Of eleven patients with serum zinc below 10 mumol/l, six had recurrent infections of the skin, a significantly greater proportion than in patients whose serum zinc was 10 mumol/l or above. It is suspected that the decreased plasma zinc concentration in children with eczema is a non-specific consequence of the dermatological disorder, and therefore there is no indication for zinc supplementation.
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Authors | T J David, F E Wells, T C Sharpe, A C Gibbs |
Journal | The British journal of dermatology
(Br J Dermatol)
Vol. 111
Issue 5
Pg. 597-601
(Nov 1984)
ISSN: 0007-0963 [Print] England |
PMID | 6498092
(Publication Type: Journal Article)
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Chemical References |
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Topics |
- Adolescent
- Child
- Child, Preschool
- Dermatitis, Atopic
(blood, complications)
- Female
- Humans
- Ichthyosis
(complications)
- Infant
- Male
- Skin Diseases, Infectious
(complications)
- Spectrophotometry, Atomic
- Zinc
(blood, deficiency)
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