This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Probiotics in infectious diarrhoea in children

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

  • probiotics are products containing viable micro-organisms taken with the intention of altering the person's intestinal microflora in an attempt to improve health or treat disease
    • they can include one or more species of bacteria
      • most commonly Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species (both part of normal human intestinal flora) or, less commonly, yeasts such as Saccharomyces species
    • possible mechanisms for beneficial effects include modulating the activity of immune cells in the intestinal mucosa and submucosa; and displacing, or suppressing the growth of, enteric pathogens in the gastrointestinal tract by competing for nutrients or binding sites, or producing antimicrobial chemicals
    • note that there have been a few reports of severe infections arising from probiotic ingestion (usually in debilitated or immunosuppressed patients)
  • evidence suggests that probiotics can reduce the duration of acute infectious diarrhoea in children by almost a day (1)
    • more studies are required to define which specific strains and doses of probiotics are most effective for children with acute diarrhoea, and to assess the place of probiotic therapy for acute infectious diarrhoea in adults

Reference:

  1. Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin (2004); 42(11):85-8.

Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.