Objective: To evaluate the effect of zinc as an adjuvant therapy in radiologically confirmed pneumonia in children 2-24 months of age.
Patients and methods: We analyzed data of 212 children with pneumonia for whom chest X-ray films were available at enrollment and at least two radiologists agreed on the diagnosis of pneumonia. We compared the time to recovery in the two groups (n = 121, zinc group and n = 91, placebo group) using a Cox proportional hazards regression model.
Results: Time to recovery was similar in both groups [median interquartile range: zinc, 84 h (64, 140 h); placebo, 85 h (65, 140 h)]. The absolute risk reduction for treatment failure was 5.2% (95% confidence interval: -4.8, 15.1) with zinc supplementation.
Conclusion: There was no significant beneficial effect of zinc on the duration of recovery or risk of treatment failure in children with radiologically confirmed pneumonia.