A Meta-Analysis on the Efficacy of Zinc in Oral Mucositis during Cancer Chemo and/or Radiotherapy-An Evidence-Based Approach.

Zinc in various therapeutic doses was used on patients suffering from oral mucositis during cancer treatment. A meta-analysis was conducted to probe the role of oral zinc as a possible treatment option for oral mucositis. A literature search was done using PubMed, EBSCO, Cochrane, MedLine, ScienceDirect, ResearchGate and Google Scholar with key words. The analysis was directed to recognize and identify the use of zinc supplementations at a confidence interval (CI) 95% with p value significance taken as <0.05. A total number of 21,428 articles was retrieved. After thorough screening and assessment of the eligibility criteria, 10 articles were included in qualitative and quantitative analysis in the study. The 10 articles constituted a total sample size of 299 in the case group and 294 in the control group. Oral zinc doses used were 25 mg, 30 mg, 50 mg and 220 mg capsules and mouthwash of 0.2% zinc, as well as 0.5 g of granules dissolved in 5% sodium alginate solution. Two studies showed no significance, with the overall effect 1.61. Eight studies favored zinc over a placebo with an overall effect size of -0.89 at 95% CI of -1.08 and -0.70 which was statistically significant (Z=9.27, p<0.00001). This analysis suggests that zinc usage has shown significant reduction in the severity of oral mucositis but not prevention. The onset of the reaction was delayed and hastened healing. Pharyngeal mucositis, pain and quality of life of the individuals received no effect from zinc therapy.