Clinical Efficacy Comparison of Saccharomyces Boulardii and Lactic Acid as Probiotics in Acute Pediatric Diarrhea

Objective: To compare the efficacy of Saccharomyces boulardii and lactic acid producing probiotics in addition to usual treatment regimen to cure diarrhea among children (6 months to 5 years of age). Study Design: Randomized controlled trial. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Pediatrics, Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore, from February to July 2015. Methodology: Children suffering from acute diarrhea were orally administered Saccharomyces boulardii and lactic acid producing probiotics for 5 days. The efficacy of administered probiotics was monitored. Patients were given Saccharomyces boulardii and lactic acid producing probiotics randomly to remove the bias. Results: Two hundred patients randomly selected for trials; out of which, 100 were treated with Saccharomyces boulardii while the other 100 were supplemented with lactic acid concomitantly along with conventional diarrhea treatment. Results indicated that Saccharomyces boulardii treatment group has significantly higher efficacy rate (45%) compared to lactic acid producing probiotics (26%). Conclusion: This study concluded that Saccharomyces boulardii has a better efficacy compared to lactic acid and may be adopted as a probiotic of choice.