[Treatment of gastroenteritis dehydration with a gluco-electrolytic solution given orally in a hospital milieu].

We analyze the therapeutical value of an oral glucoelectrolytic solution when treating 132 hospitalized patients ranging from 1 to 36 months of age, with acute diarrhea and/or dehydration. These children were offered ad libitum a solution containing: Na 50 mEq/l, K 30 mEq/l, CO3H 24 mMol/l, glucose 111 mMol/l, and saccharose 55 mMol/l, with an osmolarity of 300 mOsm/1. We observed a simultaneous clinical recovery and normalization of the hydroelectrolytic disturbances (p less than 0.05). Furthermore the differences in the ingested quantities by dehydrated and well hydrated children (p less than 0.05), or as expressed in ml/kg/hour during the first six hours compared with the following hours in the whole group (p less than 0.05), demonstrate a physiological recovers of the patient. We conclude that the use of these solutions should have priority over other treatment even in hospitalized patients.