NAPLES, Italy, Aug. 10 (UPI) -- Not all commercially available probiotic preparations are effective in children with acute diarrhea, a study by researchers in Italy found.
Researchers at the University of Naples tested five different preparations on 571 children ages 3 months to 36 months with acute diarrhea being treated by a pediatrician. Children were randomly assigned to receive either a probiotic product for five days, or an oral rehydration solution.
At the time of the study, the probiotic products were among the most widely used preparations in Italy -- available only in pharmacies.
Duration of diarrhea was much lower in children receiving Lactobacillus GG, a probiotic, than among those receiving oral rehydration -- and three other preparations had no significant effect.
The efficacy of probiotic preparations is related to the individual strains of bacteria, and physicians should choose preparations based on effectiveness data, said the study, published in the British Medical Journal Online First.
