Probiotics for acute gastroenteritis

In children with acute gastroenteritis, evidence from low- and middle-income countries demonstrate that some strains of probiotics (eg Lactobacillus rhamnosus strain GGCanani, 2007, Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938Patro-Golab, 2019Guarino, 2018, Saccharomyces boulardiiSzajewska, 2020) reduce the duration and severity of diarrhoea when given in addition to rehydration therapy, and may be useful adjunctive therapyVandenplas, 2016.

In adults with acute gastroenteritis, at the time of writing, there is insufficient evidence to recommend probioticsFlorez, 2016Collinson, 2020. For information about the use of probiotics to prevent antibiotic-associated diarrhoea, see Antibiotic-associated diarrhoea.