The Turkish Journal of Pediatrics
2009 , Vol 51 , Num 3
Efficacy and safety of Saccharomyces boulardii in amebiasisassociated diarrhea in children
Department of Pediatrics, Ankara Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey1,
The efficacy and safety of adding Saccharomyces boulardii to antibiotic treatment for
amebiasis-associated acute diarrhea in children were assessed in this study.
Forty-five children in Group I received only metronidazole per oral for 10
days while 40 patients in Group II received S. boulardii in addition to the
same medication. The major outcomes investigated were duration of acute and
bloody diarrhea, frequency and consistency of stools, resolution time of the
symptoms, and the tolerance and side effects of the treatment regimens.
The median duration of acute diarrhea was 5 (1-10) days in Group I and 4.5
(1-10) days in Group II (p=0.965). The median number of stools on followup
and duration of bloody diarrhea, fever, abdominal pain and vomiting were
similar in the two groups. S. boulardii was well tolerated by the children and
no side effects were recorded.
Addition of S. boulardii to antibiotic treatment of amebiasis-associated acute
diarrhea in children does not seem to be more effective than metronidazole
treatment alone.
Keywords :
amebiasis, children, diarrhea, Entamoeba histolytica, probiotics, Saccharomyces boulardii.