Treatment of rotavirus infection in children: the role of probiotics

Rotavirus infection (RVI) is a key public health problem worldwide. The use of probiotics is considered as one of the key mechanisms for correcting the condition in this disease. The objective of the work was to evaluate the clinical efficacy of a probiotic containing Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis and inulin in the treatment of RVI in young children. Patients and methods. A total of 193 patients with RVI aged 1 month to 7 years (3.3 ± 1.6 years) treated as inpatients (groups C1 and C0, n = 68) and outpatients (groups A1 and A0, n = 125) were included in an open prospective, randomized, two-center study. In addition to standard therapy, patients in groups C1 and A1 received a probiotic containing L. acidophilus, B. animalis subsp. lactis and inulin (Linex Forte, Sandoz, Slovenia). Duration of diarrhea, fever, vomiting, abdominal pain, and severity of these symptoms on the 3rd and 7th days of the disease served as criteria of therapy efficacy. Results. Probiotic use in the treatment of RVI contributed to a significant reduction in the duration of diarrhea (by 1.4–2.1 days), fever (by 1–1.1 days) and abdominal pain (by 0.9–2 days). The overall severity of RVI according to the Clark scale in patients of groups C1, A1 was statistically significantly lower than groups C0 and A0 (13.2 ± 3.3 and 17.8 ± 5.4 points, respectively; p = 0.012). The severity of pain syndrome was significantly lower in group C1 than in group C0 (p = 0.039). In addition, in groups C1 and A1 there was a more rapid relief of digestive disorders according to coprological studies. Conclusion. Thus, the use of probiotics in the complex therapy of RVI contributes not only to shortening the duration of diarrhea, but also to a significant reduction in the severity of symptoms of intoxication, duration and intensity of pain syndrome. The greatest effect is achieved when probiotics are administered in the first 48 h of the disease, provided they contain strains with proven clinical efficacy. The combination of probiotic strains of L. acidophilus, B. animalis subsp. lactis and inulin demonstrated significant safety and tolerability, as well as high efficacy in the treatment of RVI in children. Key words: rotavirus infection, probiotics, diarrhea, clinical efficacy, children