Zinc treatment ameliorates diarrhea and intestinal inflammation in undernourished rats

BMC Gastroenterology

Table 2 Oral zinc supplementation reduced diarrheal scores following lactulose-induced osmotic diarrhea

Day	P	UN + Lac N = 12	UN + Lac + Zn N = 12	P
8	ns	0 (0–0)	0 (0–0)	ns
9	ns	2 (0–4)	1 (0–4)	ns
10	ns	1 (0–3)	0 (0–1)*	<0.05
11	ns	2 (1–4)	0.5 (0–4)*	<0.05
12	ns	2 (1–4)	0.5 (0–4)*	<0.05
13	ns	2 (0–4)	0 (0–4)*	<0.05
14	ns	2 (1–4)	1 (0–2)*	<0.05

Normal stools: normal texture, consistency, and dryness.
Diarrhea scores: + = wet stools; ++ = pasty stools; +++ = semiliquid stools; ++++ = watery diarrhea.
Data are reported as median score. The score total range is shown in parenthesis. Data were analyzed by Kruskal-Wallis and Dunns post-test.
Groups: UN = undernourished controls; UN + Zn = undernourished rats treated with oral zinc acetate (500 mg/L); UN + Lac = undernourished rats challenged by saturated lactose (30 g/Kg); UN + Lac + Zn = Zinc-treated undernourished rats challenged by saturated lactose (30 g/Kg).

ISSN: 1471-230X