Oral Rehydration Therapy for Invasive Diarrhea

Current guidelines for the management of diarrheal diseases focus on the use of oral rehydration therapy (ORT). Clinically evident dehydration of a moderate degree is not uncommon with invasive diarrhea, and when it occurs, the response to ORT is satisfactory. Studies from hospitals and the community each document the effectiveness of ORT for rehydration of patients with invasive diarrhea. This has been confirmed in a clinical trial of oral rehydration solution (ORS) for the treatment of diarrheal diseases in children less than 5 years of age. Children with moderate dehydration benefited most from ORS, especially those who had culture-proven invasive diarrhea. Significant early weight gain was observed for this group of patients alone after rehydration with ORS. In developing countries, there is no reason to withhold ORT at the first signs of watery or dysenteric diarrhea regardless of the cause and independent of the decision to treat the patient with antimicrobial agents.