Table 3. Relationship Between Serum Zinc and Patients' Characteristics (Categorized Variables).
| Serum level of zinc (µg/dL) | P value | |
|---|---|---|
| Gender (male/female) | 65.7 ± 16.3/62.6 ± 15.3 | 0.2423 |
| Etiology (C/B/Al/N/O) | 62.2 ± 14.9/72.9 ± 14.3/66.1 ± 20.5/60.8 ± 13.7/60.9 ± 14.8 | 0.04 |
| Daily alcohol intake (none/< 60g/≥ 60 g) | 62.3 ± 15.0/73.0 ± 19.3/63.4±16.1 | 0.1132 |
| Edema or ascites (+/-) | 56.0 ± 19.6/65.9 ± 14.3 | < 0.0001 |
| Hepatic encephalopathy(+/-) | 51.3 ± 18.3/64.8 ± 15.4 | 0.0215 |
| Administration of diuretics (+/-) | 58.6 ± 18.9/65.6 ± 14.6 | 0.0045 |
| Administration of BCAA (+/-) | 55.0 ± 13.1/70.5 ± 14.4 | < 0.0001 |
| Administration of oral DM agents (+/-) | 65.0 ± 16.4/63.8 ± 15.7 | 0.7637 |
| Administration of insulin (+/-) | 61.9 ± 19.3/64.3 ± 15.5 | 0.347 |
Values are expressed as mean ± SD. C: hepatitis C virus; B: hepatitis B virus; Al: alcohol; N: non-alcoholic steatohepatitis; O: others; BCAA: branched-chain amino acid; DM: diabetes mellitus.