Serum Zinc Levels in Egyptian Patients with HCV Induced Chronic Liver Diseases: Evaluation and Clinical Significance

Background and study aim: HCV infection is a major health problem worldwide. In Egypt the estimated prevalence is about 22%. As Zinc (Zn) is the second most prevalent trace element in the body, we aimed to evaluate serum Zn levels in patients with HCV induced chronic liver diseases, study the relationship between these levels and clinical profiles, histopathological criteria and HCC characters of the studied cases. Patients and Methods: Sixty nine patients aged from (18 to 67) years were included in addition to 23 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects serving as a control, all were stratified into, G 1: 23 patients biopsy proven CH. G 2: 23 cirrhosis patients. G 3 :23 HCC patients proved by abdominal ultrasonography, triphasic spiral C.T Scan and AFP. Group 4 : 23 healthy persons as controls. All underwent routine investigations and serum Zn levels were analyzed on atomic absorption spectrophotometer, meanwhile cirrhotic subjects were assessed for severity of disease by Child-Pugh classification. Results: Serum zinc was significantly lower in chronic hepatitis than control on one hand and HCC group on the other hand (p<0.001) and they were significantly decreased in Child class C patients than Child class A (p= 0.023). Significant positive correlation was found between serum Zn and age in cirrhotic group moreover, there was no significant correlation between serum Zn and any of laboratory parameters in the studied groups and fibrosis stages of chronic hepatitis group. Negative correlation was detected between serum Zn and tumor multiplicity and BCLC in HCC group. Conclusion:We can conclude that serum zinc decreased significantly in chronic HCV patients and these levels decreased by increasing severity of liver disease according to Child classification. It is recommended to evaluate the role of zinc supplementation in treating clinical manifestation of liver cirrhosis and liver cell failure due to HCV.