Background: Gastroenteritis remains the second leading cause of death in children below 5 years of age; in addition it is also responsible for a huge burden on human society globally. Objective of this study was to investigate and compare the efficacy of probiotics in the treatment of acute gastroenteritis in children.
Methods: This was a hospital based prospective observational study conducted in a tertiary care hospital in Jamshedpur for 1 year. 80 children aged 6 months to 5 years admitted with gastroenteritis were enrolled in the study who fulfil the inclusion criteria and divided into two group (40 for each along with oral rehydration solution and zinc)- Group 1 received oral rehydration therapy and zinc, Group 2 received probiotics. Both groups underwent a thorough physical examination and duration of diarrhoea during hospital stay measured. Chi square test were used for analysis.
Results: The duration of diarrhoea significantly reduced (45.2 hrs) in Group2 as compared to Group 1 (52.8 hrs) (p< 0.05).
Conclusions: Probiotics is effective in reducing the duration of diarrhoea and hospital stay in children with acute gastroenteritis.
Impact Factor
2022: 6.012
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