Prophylaxis and treatment of rhinovirus colds with zinc gluconate lozenges

Abstract

Following a tolerance study, double-blind placebo controlled trials were conducted to determine the prophylactic effect of zinc gluconate lozenges on rhinovirus challenge and, in a third study, their therapeutic efficacy when given at the start of colds caused by virus inoculation was tested. In the prophylaxis study a total of 57 volunteers received lozenges of either zinc gluconate (23 mg) (29 volunteers) or matched placebo (28 volunteers) every 2 h while awake during a period of four and a half days. They were challenged with 10(2) tissue culture infecting dose (TCID50) of human rhinovirus 2 (HRV-2) on the second day of medication, and were monitored daily for symptoms and signs of colds and laboratory evidence of infection. Zinc reduced the total mean clinical score from 8.2 in the placebo group to 5.7 and the reduction of the mean clinical score was statistically significant on the second day after virus challenge. In the therapeutic study 69 volunteers were inoculated with 10(2) TCID50 of HRV-2 and those who developed cold symptoms were randomly allocated to receive either zinc gluconate lozenges (six volunteers) or matched placebo lozenges (six volunteers) every two hours they were awake for six days. Treatment of colds with zinc reduced the mean daily clinical score and this was statistically significant on the fourth and fifth day of medication. Similarly, medication also reduced the mean daily nasal secretion weight and total tissue count and these reductions were statistically significant on days two and six for nasal secretion weights and days four to six of medication for tissue counts when compared with placebo.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Zinc Lozenges: Cold Cure or Candy? Solution Chemistry Determinations

“…Eby described these effects as local, not systemic. Similar results rapidly followed with a 1987 report by the British Medical Research Council (MRC) Common Cold Unit [3].…”

Zinc Gluconate and the Common Cold: A Controlled Clinical Study

“…This is further suggested by another study, which found a significant reduction of symptoms when a non-chelating formulation was used. 7 The present study was carried out to test the hypothesis that pleasant-tasting ZGG lozenges that release 93% of the ionic zinc into saliva may produce similar efficacy to that originally reported by Eby et al 1 …”

Zinc for the treatment of the common cold: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

“…The remaining four trials either measured but did not report the outcome 26,29 or reported the proportion of symptomatic patients on each day. 38,39 Eight trials (n = 934) could be pooled in the meta-analysis ( Figure 2).…”