Probiotics combined with montmorillonite for treatment of diarrhea in children: Effect on clinical symptoms, immune function, and adverse reactions

AIM To evaluate the effect of probiotics combined with montmorillonite on clinical symptoms, immune function, and adverse reactions in children with diarrhea, in order to provide reference for clinical treatment of this disease in children. METHODS One hundred and twenty-four children with diarrhea treated at our hospital from September 2014 to August 2015 were randomly divided into either an observation group or a control group. The control group received conventional treatments including cooling, rehydration, and correction of electrolyte balance, and the observation group patients were treated with montmorillonite powder combined with probiotics. Time to clinical remission, indicators of immune functions, and adverse reactions were compared between the two groups. RESULTS The total effective rate was significantly higher in the observation group than in the control group (93.6% vs 79.1%, P < 0.05). Times to stool character recovery, fever remission, vomiting disappearance, abdominal pain r e l i e f, and fecal routine indicator recovery were significantly short in the observation than in the control group (2.1 d ± 1.0 d vs 4.7 d ± 2.0 d; 1.3 d ± 0.6 d vs 2.7 d ± 0.8 d; 1.2 d ± 0.4 d vs 2.5 d ± 0.9 d; 1.2 d ± 0.4 d vs 2.3 d ± 0.8 d, 2.5 d ± 1.0 d vs 4.5 d ± 1.3 d, P < 0.05). After treatment, immune function indexes were improved in both groups (P < 0.05), and IgA, IgG, and CD4+/CD8+ ratio were significantly higher in the observation group than in the control group (1.76 g/L ± 0.39 g/L vs 1.31 g/L ± 0.52 g/L; 15.72 g/L ± 0.63 g/L vs 10.95 g/L ± 0.64 g/L, 1.73 ± 0.25 vs 1.38 ± 0.25, P < 0.05). There were no significant adverse reactions observed in the treatment. CONCLUSION Montmorillonite powder combined with probiotics in the treatment of diarrhea in children can improve the therapeutic effect, shorten the time to disappearance of clinical symptoms, and improve immune function.