<i>Lactobacillus paracasei</i> Strain ST11 Has No Effect on Rotavirus but Ameliorates the Outcome of Nonrotavirus Diarrhea in Children From Bangladesh

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown that selected strains of lactobacilli that are administered orally result in a modest reduction of diarrhea duration. However, duration alone is not considered optimal for therapeutic evaluation of any agent in diarrhea. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of a new probiotic, Lactobacillus paracasei strain ST11 (ST11), in acute childhood diarrhea by using evaluation criteria recommended by the World Health Organization. METHODS: In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 230 male infants and young children, 4 to 24 months of age, presenting with diarrhea of <2 days' duration were admitted to the metabolic research ward of the International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh, and fed 10(10) colony-forming units of lyophilized ST11 or placebo daily for…