Acute diarrhea in developed countries. A rationale for self-treatment

Acute diarrhea is a common, nonlethal condition that causes frequent inconvenience and economic loss. People rarely consult physicians for this problem. Epidemiologic studies among adults, hospitalized adults, children attending day care centers, homosexual men, and travelers indicate a wide spectrum of etiologic agents. The clinical presentation of acute diarrhea may lead clinicians to consider certain causative agents, but it is not diagnostic of any specific cause. Clinical laboratory studies can detect or isolate pathogens in only a minority of cases. By the time this information is available, patients have usually recovered. For these reasons, early self-treatment aimed at reducing symptoms of acute diarrhea is recommended.