Purpose

Zinc is an essential dietary component for humans and the second most prevalent trace element; however, serum zinc levels after gastrectomy have not been fully elucidated. This study aimed to evaluate the correlation between clinicopathologic features and serum zinc levels in patients who underwent gastrectomy for gastric cancer.

Methods

The study enrolled 617 patients who underwent gastrectomy for gastric cancer at the Kochi Medical School. Clinical data were obtained to investigate associations between clinicopathological features, including nutritional indicators and serum zinc levels. Serum zinc deficiency was defined as serum zinc level < 80 μg/dL.

Results

The median zinc level of the 617 patients was 73 μg/dL (range, 31–144 μg/dL), and serum zinc deficiency was present in 68.6% of patients. Median age was significantly higher in the zinc low level group than in the normal group (69 vs. 66 years, P < 0.001). Albumin was significantly lower in the zinc low level group than in the normal group (3.9 vs. 4.2 g/dL, P < 0.001). C-reactive protein level was significantly higher in the zinc low level group than in the normal group (0.12 vs. 0.10 mg/dL, P = 0.014). The median serum zinc level was significantly lower in the patients who received chemotherapy after gastrectomy than in those who were not received chemotherapy (72 vs. 76 μg/dL, P < 0.001). Serum zinc levels showed a significant positive correlation with serum albumin (r = 0.505, P = 0.044). Multivariate analysis showed that serum albumin level was significantly associated with serum zinc level (β = 0.489, P < 0.001).

Conclusions

Serum zinc deficiency was found in 68.6% of postoperative patients who underwent gastrectomy for gastric cancer, which was highly correlated with serum albumin.

中文翻译：

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胃癌胃切除术后患者血清锌缺乏情况

目的

锌是人类必不可少的膳食成分，也是第二大最普遍的微量元素；然而，胃切除术后的血清锌水平尚未完全阐明。本研究旨在评估因胃癌接受胃切除术的患者的临床病理特征与血清锌水平之间的相关性。

方法

该研究招募了 617 名在高知医学院接受胃切除术的胃癌患者。获得临床数据以研究临床病理特征之间的关联，包括营养指标和血清锌水平。血清锌缺乏定义为血清锌水平 < 80 μg/dL。

结果

617 名患者的中位锌水平为 73 μg/dL（范围为 31-144 μg/dL），68.6% 的患者存在血清锌缺乏症。锌低水平组的中位年龄显着高于正常组（69 岁 vs. 66 岁，P  < 0.001）。锌低水平组的白蛋白显着低于正常组（3.9 vs. 4.2 g/dL，P  < 0.001）。锌低水平组的 C 反应蛋白水平显着高于正常组（0.12 与 0.10 mg/dL，P  = 0.014）。胃切除术后接受化疗的患者血清锌水平中位数显着低于未接受化疗的患者（72 vs. 76 μg/dL，P < 0.001)。血清锌水平与血清​​白蛋白呈显着正相关（r  = 0.505，P  = 0.044）。多因素分析显示血清白蛋白水平与血清​​锌水平显着相关（β  =0.489，P  <0.001）。

结论

68.6%的胃癌术后患者出现血清锌缺乏，与血清白蛋白高度相关。