Impact of the Use of Zinc in the Prevention of Oral Mucositis in Pediatric Patients With Lymphoblastic Acute Leukemia.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the use of zinc in the prevention, incidence and severity of oral mucositis in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in chemotherapy (induction and consolidation phase) of the National Institute of Pediatrics and the Federico Gómez Children's Hospital of Mexico during the period from 2019 to 2020. Methodology: Double-blind randomized clinical trial conducted in pediatric patients with newly diagnosed or relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The subjects will be randomized to designate them in the control group (Group1 placebo) or intervention group (Group 2 zinc). The zinc / placebo intervention will be administered orally in tablets of 50-100 mg / day, from day 1 of chemotherapy until the end of the consolidation phase (2 to 2.5 months). For the detection of OM the mucositis scale of the World Health Organization will be used and the observation times will correspond to day 1, 4, 7, 14 and 21 of each chemotherapy cycle. Patients of both groups with OM will receive the same treatment (mouthwash of Gelclair) and will be observed daily until healing to determine the days of recovery. Statistical analysis: Independent t-test and Chi-square test for the difference between the two study groups, ANOVA to compare the groups with respect to the severity of OM.