Current Best EvidencePalatability of oral rehydration solutions varies but does not impact quantity consumed
Section snippets
Question
Among children seen in the emergency department, how palatable are 3 different oral rehydration solutions?
Design
Prospective, blinded, randomized, 3-period, 3-treatment crossover trial.
Setting
Emergency department of a tertiary care pediatric hospital in Canada.
Participants
Children aged 5 to 10 years (n = 66) with concerns unrelated to the gastrointestinal tract.
Intervention
Each participant consumed as much of each solution (Enfalyte [Mead Johnson Nutritionals, Evansvill, Indiana], Pedialyte [Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Park, Illinois], and Pediatric Electrolyte [PendoPharm, Mont-Royal, Quebec, Canada]) as they desired during a 15-minute period.
Outcomes
The primary outcome was each child's rating of taste as measured on a 100-mm visual analog scale (worst taste, 0 mm; best taste, 100 mm). Secondary outcome measures were volume consumed, willingness to consume each liquid again, and the most favored liquid.
Main Results
All enrolled patients completed all 3 study periods. A significant carryover effect was detected for taste scores (P = .03), which were significantly different with and without adjustment for the carryover effect (P < .001). Unadjusted values were 65 mm for Pedialyte, 58 mm for Pediatric Electrolyte, and 23 mm for Enfalyte. Differences in mean volume consumed were not significant (Enfalyte, 15 mL; Pediatric Electrolyte, 17 mL; and Pedialyte, 22 mL [P = .44]). The proportion of children who
Conclusions
Sucralose-sweetened oral rehydration solutions (Pedialyte and Pediatric Electrolyte) were significantly more palatable than was a comparable rice-based solution (Enfalyte).
Commentary
This study is interesting and should be considered in view of 3 points. First, consider the choice of a randomized crossover trial (alternating solutions with a 5-minute washout periods) over parallel design (different patients tasting different formulations). There is likely importance to the first formulation tasted. One may consider a potential bias when scoring the second and third formulations when a child experienced an unpleasant or a very good taste the first time around. This carryover
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Cited by (1)
Acute diarrhea: evidence-based management
2015, Jornal de PediatriaCitation Excerpt :Considering this fact, a way to improve this scenario has been sought. Flavored ORS, present in some commercial products, increases its palatability, but it does not appear to modify the consumed volume.24 The addition of zinc, prebiotics, amino acids, disaccharides, and glucose polymers has resulted in only a modest improvement in ORS effectiveness.9