
Diarrhoea should be treated with oral rehydration solution (ORS), a solution of clean water, sugar and salt. In addition, a 10-14 day supplemental treatment course of dispersible 20 mg zinc tablets shortens diarrhoea duration and improves outcomes. There are three clinical types of diarrhoea:
Full Answer
What is the primary goal of treatment for diarrhea?
In addition, usual hygiene practices may be disrupted and healthcare seeking behaviors may be altered. The primary goal of treating any form of diarrhea—viral, bacterial, parasitic, or non-infectious—is preventing dehydration or appropriately rehydrating persons presenting with dehydration.
What is the World Health Organization diarrhea manual?
World Health Organization A manual for physicians and other senior health workers Department of Child and Adolescent Health and Development THE TREATMENT OF DIARRHOEA A manual for physicians and other senior health workers
What is the burden of diarrheal diseases?
In this entry we look at the burden of diarrheal diseases and what can we do to reduce it. Diarrheal diseases were the third leading cause of death of children younger than 5 in 2017 and are becoming an increasing burden in people aged 70 and over. The highest mortality from diarrheal diseases is in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
What is the management of diarrhea in children?
The management of acute diarrhea in children: oral rehydration, maintenance, and nutritional therapy. MMWR 1992; 41:1-20; and World Health Organization. The treatment of diarrhea: a manual for physicians and other senior health workers. Geneva , Switzerland : World Health Organization, 1995 .

WHO recommended treatment for diarrhea?
Diarrhoea should be treated with oral rehydration solution (ORS), a solution of clean water, sugar and salt. In addition, a 10-14 day supplemental treatment course of dispersible 20 mg zinc tablets shortens diarrhoea duration and improves outcomes.
What is diarrhea World Health Organization?
Diarrhoea is the passage of 3 or more loose or liquid stools per day, or more frequently than is normal for the individual. It is usually a symptom of gastrointestinal infection, which can be caused by a variety of bacterial, viral and parasitic organisms.
How can you treat diarrhea?
Treatment for Diarrhea Adults can take an over-the-counter medicine such as bismuth subsalicylate or loperamide, which you can get as liquids or tablets. You also need to stay hydrated. You should drink at least six 8-ounce glasses of fluids each day. Choose electrolyte replacement drinks or soda without caffeine.
What is the main immediate management of diarrhoea?
The first step to treating acute diarrhea is rehydration, preferably oral rehydration. Combination loperamide/simethicone may provide faster and more complete relief of acute nonspecific diarrhea and gas-related discomfort than either medication alone.
WHO guideline for dehydration treatment?
WHO (World Health Organisation) suggested management of dehydration secondary to diarrhoeal illnessassessmentfluid deficit as % of body weighttreatmentno signs of dehydration<5%use treatment plan Asome dehydration5-10%use treatment plan Bsevere dehydration>10%use treatment plan C
Who dehydration treatment plan?
Prevent dehydration: – Encourage age-appropriate fluid intake, including breastfeeding in young children. – Administer ORS according to WHO Treatment Plan A after any loose stool....No dehydration.AgeQuantity of ORSChildren < 2 years50 to 100 ml (10 to 20 teaspoons)Children 2 to 10 years100 to 200 ml (½ to 1 glass)1 more row
What antibiotic treats diarrhea?
Presently, azithromycin is the preferred first-line antibiotic for the treatment of acute watery diarrhea (single dose 500 mg), as well as for febrile diarrhea and dysentery (single dose 1000 mg).
Is loperamide good for diarrhea?
Loperamide is a medicine to treat diarrhoea (runny poo). It can help with short-term diarrhoea or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Loperamide is also used for recurring or longer lasting diarrhoea from bowel conditions such as Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and short bowel syndrome.
What is the ICD 10 code for diarrhea?
ICD-10 code R19. 7 for Diarrhea, unspecified is a medical classification as listed by WHO under the range - Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified .
Does metronidazole treat diarrhea?
Metronidazole (brand name Flagyl®) is an antibacterial and antiprotozoal agent used in the treatment of certain anaerobic bacterial and protozoal infections, such as those caused by Giardia and Trichomonas. It is often used to treat diarrhea and other intestinal problems.
What is the treatment for diarrhea?
Diarrhea can lead to life-threatening dehydration and therefore, an effective treatment needs to target the loss of fluids. Oral rehydration therapy (ORT, also referred to as ORS) is one of the most common treatments used to prevent dehydration caused by diarrhea. 20
What was the most common treatment for diarrhea in the 1960s?
The most common treatment for diarrhea at the time was the much more expensive intravenous rehydration therapy (IVT), which involved the administration of saline solution intravenously in hospital settings. While IVT was an effective treatment, Cash and Nalin recognized the need for an alternative treatment because the people most affected by diarrheal disease were those who did not have access to clinical centers where IVT was available. In addition, the possibilities of scaling-up IVT use during large outbreaks of diseases – such as cholera epidemics – were limited.
What causes diarrhea in people over 70?
The majority of cases of diarrhea in people aged 70 and over are caused by bacterial pathogens. The pathogen responsible for most deaths from diarrhea in this age group is shigella. As the visualization shows, shigella bacteria were responsible for 30% of attributable diarrheal deaths in 2016.
What are the risk factors for diarrhea?
The highest risk factors for development of diarrheal diseases are unsafe drinking water and poor sanitation. For children child growth failure and vitamin A deficiency are also important. Rotavirus vaccines are effective at preventing diarrhea in children and have saved more than 128,000 lives of children in 2016.
What causes diarrhea in children?
Diarrheal diseases are caused primarily by viral and bacterial pathogens. The visualization shows the major pathogens responsible for diarrhea in children; the area of each box corresponds to the number of deaths from diarrhea in 2016 that can be attributed to each pathogen.
How many children with diarrhea receive ORT?
According to data from UNICEF, on average only 44% of children with diarrhea receive ORT (you can view this data on the Chart tab in the interactive visualization). 29 In some countries the coverage is very low, at less than 1-in-5.
How many people died from diarrhea in 2017?
1.6 million people died because of diarrheal diseases in 2017. Diarrheal diseases are among the leading causes of death globally. In this entry we look at the burden of diarrheal diseases and what can we do to reduce it.
What is the primary goal of treating diarrhea?
The primary goal of treating any form of diarrhea—viral, bacterial, parasitic, or non-infectious—is preventing dehydration or appropriately rehydrating persons presenting with dehydration. The following are general guidelines for healthcare ...
When is an age appropriate diet recommended for rapid realimentation?
For rapid realimentation, an age-appropriate, unrestricted diet is recommended as soon as dehydration is corrected
What is oral rehydration solution?
Oral rehydration solutions (ORS) such as Pedialyte® (Abbott Laboratories)* or Gastrolyte® (Aventis Pharmaceuticals)* or similar commercially available solutions containing appropriate amounts of sodium, potassium and glucose should be used for rehydration whenever patient can drink the required volumes; otherwise appropriate intravenous fluids may be used.
Why is antimicrobial therapy not indicated for children?
Even when a bacterial cause is suspected in an outpatient setting, antimicrobial therapy is not usually indicated among children because most cases of acute diarrhea are self-limited and their duration is not shortened by the use of antimicrobial agents.
Can you give infants formula during diarrhea?
Infants too weak to eat can be given breastmilk or formula through a nasogastric tube. Lactose-containing formulas are usually well-tolerated. If lactose malabsorption appears clinically substantial, lactose-free formulas can be used. Complex carbohydrates, fresh fruits, lean meats, yogurt, and vegetables are all recommended. Carbonated drinks or commercial juices with a high concentration of simple carbohydrates should be avoided.
Can you do a routine lab test for gastrointestinal disease?
No routine laboratory tests or medications are recommended. However, if a patient is living in conditions that are crowded or otherwise conducive to outbreaks of gastrointestinal disease, providers should consider testing for bacterial, viral, or parasitic pathogens ( www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/outbreaks ).
Can antimicrobials be used to control carriage?
Although hand hygiene is the mainstay of prevention, antimicrobial treatment can eliminate carriage and help to control an outbreak if rigorous hand hygiene measures are also observed. Care-takers should be counseled in appropriate hand hygiene practices.
What is zinc used for?
Zinc has been shown to play critical roles in metallo-enzymes, poly-. ribosomes, the cell membrane, and cellular function, leading to the belief that it also plays a central role in cellular . growth and in function of the immune system. Although the theoretical basis for a potential role of zinc has been .
Is cholera a cause of morbidity?
cholera, is also an important cause of morbidity among older children and adults. Many new microbial causes of diarrhoea have been discovered during the past three decades. Research laboratories . can now identify a microbial cause in over three quarters of children presenting at health facilities with diarrhoea.
Is diarrhoea a nutritional disease?
5 . 2.4 Malnutrition2. Diarrhoea is, in reality, as much a nutritional disease as one of fluid and electrolyte loss. Children who die from . diarrhoea, despite good management of dehydration, are usually malnourished and often severely so.
How to treat nondysenteric diarrhea in adults?
Milder and uncomplicated cases of nondysenteric diarrhea in both adults and children can be treated at home, regardless of the etiologic agent, using home-based fluid or ORS as appropriate. Parents/caregivers of children should be educated to recognize signs of dehydration, and when to take children to health facility for treatment. Early intervention and administration of home-based fluids/ORS reduces dehydration, malnutrition, and other complications and leads to fewer clinic visits and potentially fewer hospitalizations and deaths.
How many children die from diarrhea every year?
This amounts to 18% of all the deaths of children under the age of five and means that more than 5000 children are dying every day as a result of diarrheal diseases. Of all child deaths from diarrhea, 78% occur in the African and South-East Asian regions.
Is L. boulardii effective for antibiotics?
In antibiotic-associated diarrhea, there is strong evidence of efficacy for S. boulardii or L. rhamnosus GG in adults or children who are receiving antibiotic therapy. One study indicated that L. casei DN-114 001 is effective in hospitalized adult patients for preventing antibiotic-associated diarrhea and C. difficile diarrhea.
Can antiemetics cause diarrhea?
None of these drugs addresses the underlying causes or effects of diarrhea (loss of water, electrolytes, and nutrients). Antiemetics are usually unnecessary in acute diarrhea management, and some that have sedative effects may make ORT difficult.
Which antidiarrheal drug has the most evidence of efficacy?
Among hundreds of over-the-counter products promoted as antidiarrheal agents, only loperamide and bismuth subsalicylate have sufficient evidence of efficacy and safety.
How many episodes of diarrhea are there in children?
Each child below 5 years of age experiences an average of 3 annual episodes of acute diarrhea. Globally in this age group, acute diarrhea is the second leading cause of death (after pneumonia), and both the incidence and the risk of mortality from diarrheal diseases are greatest among children in this age group, particularly during infancy—thereafter, rates decline incrementally. Other direct consequences of diarrhea in children include growth faltering, malnutrition, and impaired cognitive development in resource-limited countries.
What probiotics are used in reducing bacterial infection?
It has been confirmed that different probiotic strains (see tables 8 and 9 in WGO’s Guideline on probiotics at http://www.worldgastroenterology.org/probiotics-prebiotics.html) including Lactobacillus reuteri ATCC 55730, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, Lactobacillus casei DN-114 001, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae ( boulardii) are useful in reducing the severity and duration of acute infectious diarrhea in children. The oral administration of probiotics shortens the duration of acute diarrheal illness in children by approximately 1 day.
What is oral rehydration therapy?
Oral rehydration therapy (ORT) is the administration of appropriate solutions by mouth to prevent or correct diarrheal dehydration. ORT is a cost-effective method of managing acute gastroenteritis and it reduces hospitalization requirements in both developed and developing countries.
How many children die from diarrhea every year?
This amounts to 18% of all the deaths of children below the age of 5 and means that >5000 children are dying every day as a result of diarrheal diseases. Of all child deaths from diarrhea, 78% occur in the African and Southeast Asian regions.
When was the rotavirus stopped?
Rotavirus: in 1998, a rotavirus vaccine, RotaShield (Wyeth), was licensed in the United States for routine immunization of infants. In 1999, production was stopped after the vaccine was causally linked to intussusception in infants. Other rotavirus vaccines are being developed, and preliminary trials are promising.
How can stool analysis and culture costs be reduced?
Stool analysis and culture costs can be reduced by improving the selection and testing of the specimens submitted on the basis of interpreting the case information—s uch as patient history, clinical aspects, visual stool inspection, and estimated incubation period.
1. Introduction and Epidemiologic Features
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, there are about two billion cases of diarrheal disease worldwide every year, and 1.9 million children younger than 5 years of age perish from diarrhea each year, mostly in developing countries.
2. Causative Agents and Pathogenic Mechanisms
In developing countries, enteric bacteria and parasites are more prevalent than viruses and typically peak during the summer months.
3. Clinical Manifestations and Diagnosis
Although there may be clinical clues, a definitive etiological diagnosis is not possible clinically (Tables 2–4).
4. Treatment Options and Prevention
Oral rehydration therapy (ORT) is the administration of appropriate solutions by mouth to prevent or correct diarrheal dehydration. ORT is a cost-effective method of managing acute gastroenteritis and it reduces hospitalization requirements in both developed and developing countries.
