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Travellers' diarrhoea.
1Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of Texas Houston Medical School, 1.729 John Freeman Building, 6431 Fannin Street, Houston, TX, USA. charles.d.ericsson@uth.tmc.edu
International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents
|March 5, 2003
Summary
Preventing travellers' diarrhoea involves education and medication, though antibiotics are most effective. Combination therapy with antibiotics and loperamide is recommended for severe cases, while routine antibiotic prophylaxis is discouraged.
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Travel Medicine
- Gastroenterology
Background:
- Travellers' diarrhoea affects 7% in developed and 20-50% in developing countries.
- Prevention strategies include education, chemoprophylaxis, and vaccination, with varying success rates.
- Behaviour modification for food and water safety is challenging for tourists.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review current prevention and treatment options for travellers' diarrhoea.
- To evaluate the efficacy of different therapeutic agents.
- To identify optimal treatment strategies for travellers' diarrhoea.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on travellers' diarrhoea prevention and treatment.
- Analysis of efficacy data for various pharmacological agents.
- Comparison of antibiotic and non-antibiotic treatment regimens.
Main Results:
- Bismuth subsalicylate (BSS) compounds are 62% effective; antibiotics are 84% effective in prevention.
- Routine antibiotic prophylaxis is discouraged due to potential adverse effects.
- Combination therapy with antibiotics and loperamide is superior to monotherapy for distressing travellers' diarrhoea.
Conclusions:
- Non-absorbed antibiotics like rifaximin may become a preferred treatment due to fewer adverse reactions.
- Azithromycin shows promising preliminary results for treatment.
- Combination therapy with an antibiotic and loperamide is the recommended treatment of choice for severe travellers' diarrhoea.