Efficacy of zinc in young infants with acute watery diarrhea

Background Recent studies reported that zinc significantly reduced the duration and volume of acute watery diarrhea in children aged > or = 4 mo, but there were no data specifically on infants aged Objective This study investigated the effect of zinc on the duration of illness and the stool quantity in acute watery diarrhea of infants aged 1-6 mo by comparing a 20 mg Zn/d dose with a 5 mg Zn/d dose. Design Infants hospitalized with at least some dehydration (by World Health Organization classification) were enrolled in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Infants were randomly assigned to receive 20 mg Zn (acetate)/d, 5 mg Zn/d, or placebo for the duration of illness. Results Two hundred seventy-five infants were enrolled…