Efficacy of zinc as an adjuvant therapy in the treatment of severe pneumonia in hospitalised children between 2 months to 5 years of age:randomised controlled trial

After taking consent, patient demographic details, including name, age, sex, and address, will be delicately obtained from parents to uphold full privacy. The patient will undergo standard pneumonia treatment as per Karnataka institute of medical sciences, Hubli standard operation protocol (SOP). Blood sample collected for serum zinc level at the time of admission. Subsequently, children will be randomly assigned to Groups A and B by computer randomisation. Group A will receive syrup zinc (10 mg/day in children under 6 months of age and 20 mg/day in children above 6 months of age during hospitalisation for 7 days) along with antibiotics. In contrast, Group B will solely receive antibiotics without zinc supplementation. Respiratory rate, tachypnea definition based on age (respiratory rate >50 breaths/min in children <12 months of age, or >40 breaths/min in children >12 months of age), nasal flaring, and chest indrawing and oxygen saturation (SpO2) will be observed every 8 hourly, with SpO2 below 90% classified as hypoxemia. For patients on oxygen therapy, after 2-minute cessation we will assess respiratory rate, chest indrawing, and oxygen saturation. Clinical deterioration will be assessed by respiratory rate and signs of severe pneumonia. Continuous monitoring will occur and documentation done every 8th hourly extending until resolution of symptoms of pneumonia. All data will be meticulously recorded in a predefined proforma, strictly following exclusion criteria to control confounders and bias in study results.