Muhammad Abbas, Saleem Khan, Zia-ud Din, Zafar Iqbal.
Relationship of Serum Zinc Status with Scholastic Performance of Apparently Healthy Children.
Pak Paed J Jan ;43(2):103-8.

Objective: To investigate the relationship of serum zinc status with scholastic performance of primary school students. Study design: A cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of study: This study was conducted at various schools in Peshawar from September 2015 to February 2016. Material and Methods: Four hundred school children aged 6-10 years were randomly recruited. Serum zinc levels were measured by Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. Scholastic performance was evaluated by last examination result, teacher`s observation and a short competitive written test. Appropriate statistical tests were used for data analysis. Results: The study sample had more boys than girls (55.3 vs 44.8%) with mean age of 7.8 +- 1.4 years. The overall mean serum zinc level of the subjects was 72.9 +- 18.1 ug/dl. Serum zinc deficiency was found in 31.3% subjects. The scholastic performance of zinc deficient subjects was relatively poor however, the difference between the groups was not significant (p>0.05). Conclusion: Zinc deficiency was prevalent at a high rate; but, no significant relationship of zinc status was found with scholastic performance. Appropriate interventional programs should be initiated to overcome zinc deficiency among children.

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