מתוך medicontext.co.il
By C. Vidyashankar, MD
DELHI (Reuters Health) – A modified oral rehydration solution reduces the severity of diarrhea in malnourished children compared with the standard solution currently recommended by the World Health Organization, researchers reported at the recently concluded 9th Asian Conference on Diarrheal Diseases and Nutrition here.
Dr. P. Dutta and colleagues from the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases in Calcutta, India, compared the effects of the standard WHO-approved oral rehydration solution (ORS) with one that included a reduction in osmolarity and sodium content and the addition of zinc, in 64 malnourished children with acute diarrhea. Children were between 6 months and 4 years of age and had signs of dehydration.
The researchers observed that stool output and duration of diarrhea were significantly less in the hypo-osmolar ORS group. They also found that although hypo-osmolar ORS contains lesser sodium, none of the children in this group developed hyponatremia.
Meanwhile, Dr. R. Bahl, from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, and colleagues studied the effects of a zinc supplementation in acute diarrhea. Over 2000 children between the ages of 6 and 35 months received either plain ORS, ORS containing zinc, or zinc given separately as a supplement during diarrhea.
Dr. Bahl and his team observed that the severity of diarrhea was less in the zinc-ORS group compared with controls. This effect was more pronounced in the zinc supplement group, they noted.
Dr. Olivier Fontaine from the World Health Organization told conference delegates that while the ORS has been a "tremendous boon in saving lives due to diarrhea in the last two decades," it has its limitations in that it increases sodium load. He told Reuters Health that the WHO is in the process of reviewing its recommendations in favor of a hypo-osmolar ORS.
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