The Therapeutic Effect of Zinc Sulfate on Neonatal Hyperbilirubinemia

Hashemian, Somayyeh; Mohammadzadeh, Ashraf; Farhat, Ahmadshah; Ramezani, Mohammad; Seyedi, Seyed Javad

doi:10.22038/ijn.2016.7777

The Therapeutic Effect of Zinc Sulfate on Neonatal Hyperbilirubinemia

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Department of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism .Imam Reza Hospital , Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences , Mashhad, Iran

² Neonatal Research Center, Imam Reza Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

³ Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Research Center, School of Pharmacy, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

10.22038/ijn.2016.7777

Abstract

Background: Approximately 60% of term neonates and 80% of preterm ones suffer from hyperbilirubinemia in their
first week of life. This study sought to characterize the therapeutic effect of oral zinc sulfate on neonatal
hyperbilirubinemia.
Methods: In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 70 term neonates with total serum
bilirubin (TSB) level ≥ 20 mg/dl were enrolled. Thirty-four cases were treated with phototherapy and zinc (10 mg/day,
single dose) as case, while the remainder received phototherapy plus placebo. TSB level was measured at the onset of
the intervention, as well as 12, 24 and 48 h after the intervention and compared with each other.
Results: The mean TSB levels were significantly lower in the zinc group after 12, 24 and 48 h (P=0.038, 0.005, 0.001,
respectively). The mean durations of phototherapy in the case and control groups were 2.03±0.174 and 2.33±0.478
days, respectively, being significantly less in the case group (P=0.002).
Conclusion: This study revealed that oral zinc sulfate at a single dose of 10 mg/day diminished TSB level and duration
of phototherapy.

Keywords

References

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