Hair Changes Due to Zinc Deficiency in a Case of Sucrose Malabsorption

A 7-year-old girl with sucrase deficiency and chronic diarrhea experienced poor hair growth and thinning, particularly in the occipital region, along with low plasma zinc levels. After receiving oral zinc therapy (40 mg daily), her hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes became thicker and pigmented, and her plasma zinc and serum alkaline phosphatase levels increased. Microscopic examination of her hair before treatment showed abnormalities similar to those in acrodermatitis enteropathica, which were absent after zinc supplementation.