This archive report was first published on 14 July 2019.
On July 14, 2019, the World Health Organisation (WHO) made a landmark decision to include a new co-packaged Oral Rehydration Salt (ORS) and zinc sulphate in its Model List of Essential Medicines for Children.
This move aims to reinforce the lifesaving benefits of ORS and zinc together for paediatric diarrhoea management and align with the long-standing recommendation for their use as frontline practice.
According to Dr Andrew Murrison, the British International Development Minister, "Children in some of the world’s most vulnerable communities still die from diarrhoea every day. This ground-breaking decision from the WHO will save lives."
ORS and zinc are already listed as medicines used in diarrhoea management, but as separate items with no formal guidance related to their co-packaged use existed.
Stefan Peterson, chief of health at Unicef, added, "Co-packaged ORS and zinc can be delivered by community health workers everywhere and, therefore, reach the children most in need. It can and will save lives that are unnecessarily still lost to diarrhoea."
Administration of ORS and zinc sulphate tablets for 10 to 14 days as an adjunct therapy has demonstrated to significantly reduce the duration and severity of diarrheal episodes while preventing future episodes.
