Zinc supplementation reduces Candida infections in pediatric intensive care unit: a randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial

Abstract

Resistance to anti-fungal drugs has become the main cause for increasing incidence rate of Candida infections in pediatric intensive care units (PICU). Zinc supplementation has been shown to exhibit beneficial effects on many pediatric illnesses. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of zinc supplementation on prevalence of candidemia and candiduria infections in PICU. 724 eligible children between 1 to 5 years old admitted in PICU were randomly assigned into either zinc supplementation group or placebo group. Primary endpoints were the number of Candida infections, length of PICU stay and cases of patient death 14 days after enrollment. Secondary endpoints were the incidence rates of candidemia and candiduria. The incidences of candiduria and candidemia were significantly lower in the zinc group than the placebo group. The length of PICU stay and cases of patient death were obviously lowered in the zinc group compared to the placebo group. In conclusion, zinc supplementation shows beneficial clinical efficacy in reducing Candida infections among PICU patients on broad-spectrum antibiotics with critical illnesses.