Efficacy of Lactobacillus GG in prevention of nosocomial diarrhea in infants.
OBJECTIVE
Nosocomial diarrhea is a major problem in pediatric hospitals worldwide. We evaluated the efficacy of orally administered Lactobacillus GG (LGG) in the prevention of this disease in young children.


METHODS
Eighty-one children aged 1 to 36 months who were hospitalized for reasons other than diarrhea were enrolled in a double-blind trial and randomly assigned at admission to receive LGG (n = 45) at a dose of 6 x 10(9) colony-forming units or a comparable placebo (n = 36) twice daily orally for the duration of their hospital stay.


RESULTS
LGG reduced the risk of nosocomial diarrhea (> or =3 loose or watery stools/24 h) in comparison with placebo (6.7% vs 33.3%; relative risk: 0.2; [95% CI: 0.06-0.6]; number needed to treat: 4 [95% CI: 2-10]). The prevalence of rotavirus infection was similar in LGG and placebo groups (20% vs 27.8%, respectively; relative risk: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.33-1.56). However, the use of LGG compared with placebo significantly reduced the risk of rotavirus gastroenteritis (1/45 [2.2%] vs 6/36 [16.7%], respectively; relative risk: 0.13; 95% CI: 0.02-0.79; number needed to treat: 7; 95% CI: 3-40).


CONCLUSIONS
Prophylactic use of LGG significantly reduced the risk of nosocomial diarrhea in infants, particularly nosocomial rotavirus gastroenteritis.
Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, The Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland.
H
H
Szajewska
M
M
Kotowska
J Z
JZ
Mrukowicz
M
M
Armańska
W
W
Mikołajczyk
D002675:Child, Preschool; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D003968:Diarrhea, Infantile / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007778:Lactobacillus; D008297:Male; D011044:Poland / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D019936:Probiotics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012306:Risk; D012400:Rotavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control