Safety of oral rehydration solutions in non-cholera diarrhoea

The safety of 2 oral rehydration solutions (ORS) containing 60 and 90 mEq/1 of sodium respectively was evaluated in 50 children with mild to moderate dehydration secondary to noncholera diarrhea. Hypernatremia developed in 1 patient (3.7%) on high sodium formula. The risk of hypernatremia and hyponatremia in the 2 groups did not differ significantly. 3 patients (6.1%) showed hypokalemia 24 hours after oral rehydration was initiated. While these data confirm that ORS containing 90 mEq/1 of sodium is safe, an increase in potassium content should be considered.