Serum zinc level in children with neurodevelopmental disease

Abstract

The study aimed to compare serum zinc levels between children with neurodevelopmental disorders and healthy children. A total of 63 school-aged children（49 boys and 14 girls）with neurodevelopmental disorders were included in the patients group, and in the previous study, 380 healthy age-matched children constituted the control group. Zinc deficiency was found in 19 children（30%）, latent zinc deficiency in 39（62%）, and five patients（8%）had normal zinc levels. Serum zinc level in children with neurodevelopmental disorders was significantly lower than the control data for the healthy group（p＜0.001）. Most children with neurodevelopmental disorders had either attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder（36 patients, 54%）and autism spectrum disorder（22 patients, 39%）. There was no significant difference seen in the diseases（p＝0.32）and sex（p＝0.95）. Children with neurodevelopmental disorders tend to have a zinc deficiency. No significant serum zinc level differences were notes based on disease or sex.