FormalPara Key Summary Points

Chronic diarrhea is among the top five causes of disability for all ages and diseases.

Specific diets and mechanistic-targeted-therapy, not devoid of adverse effects, are only available for a subset of disorders.

If not treatable with specific therapy, chronic diarrhea often needs long-term symptomatic empiric antidiarrheal therapy with opiate antidiarrheals and bile acid sequestrants.

Impairment of the intestinal barrier with changes in epithelial permeability, mucus layer, and immune activation have been increasingly implicated in the initiation and perpetuation of a variety of diseases associated with chronic diarrhea.

In this setting, mucosal protectors emerge as a new alternative or complementary therapy for a more efficient and safe control of symptoms in disorders associated with chronic diarrhea, although additional studies are needed to confirm if they are cost-effective in the treatment of chronic diarrhea.

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Introduction

In adults, chronic diarrhea is a leading cause of consultation in primary and secondary care [1], and shows a significant negative impact on health-related quality of life, high healthcare utilization, and increased economic burden, with direct and indirect costs estimated to reach USD492 and 129 million, respectively, in the United States in 1998 [2,3,4]. In 2019, the global burden of disease study reported diarrheal diseases, defined as three or more loose stools in a 24-h period, as the fifth ranked, causing 3.2% (2.6–4.0) of disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) for all ages and diseases [5]. Moreover, in 2019, 6.58 billion [95% uncertainty intervals (UI) 6.05–7.14] incident cases and 99.0 million (92.1–106) prevalent cases of diarrheal diseases contributed to 1.53 million (1.09–2.22) deaths and 80.9 million (65.4–103) DALYs. The most DALYs occurred in children under 5 years [45·5 million (35.8–58.3)]. Virtually all patients will experience diarrhea at some point in time, as indicated by prevalence rates [ci': 1312.4 per 100,000 (1218.9–1412.5); 9: 1286.7 per 100,000 (1192.4–1389.0)], and incidence rates [ci': 87,105.0 per 100,000 (80131.1–94,668.2); 9: 85,249.4 per 100,000 (78,405.9–92,593.8)]. These rates were slightly higher among men compared to females, while mortality rates [ci': 20.7 per 100,000 (15.3–31.6); 9: 21.2 per 100,000 (12.6–31.4)] were slightly higher among females compared to males [5].

Several definitions for chronic or persistent diarrhea have been proposed over the years. While patients’ concept of diarrhea is mostly related to decreased stool consistency [6], doctors’ concept is somewhat more pragmatic and incorporates various terms including stool frequency, consistency, volume or weight, and duration of symptoms. Stool frequency (> 3 bowel movements per day) is a commonly used criterion [7,8,9]. Consistency refers to the water-holding capacity of fecal solids, but this is difficult to quantify in clinical practice and stool is predominantly water (60–85%), hence the Bristol stool chart (BSFS) [10] for assessing consistency is recommended [11]. In contrast, stool weight or volume (> 200 g/day) are not recommended any more as a sole measure of chronic diarrhea because up to 20% of patients with watery diarrhea, who have a lower stool weight, are not included in this definition, and because stool weights vary greatly and ‘normal’ stool volumes can easily exceed this value [12]. Although there is no consensus on the duration of symptoms, most authors would accept that diarrhea persisting for longer than 4 weeks is a reasonable limit to differentiate acute from chronic diarrhea [2]. Therefore, a comprehensive and pragmatic definition of chronic diarrhea incorporates all these elements [12]: the presence of more than 3 stools per day; stool consistency between types 5 and 7 on the BSFS; and duration greater than 4 weeks.

Although difficult to estimate due to variations in definition and socio-demographic differences across populations, in two population surveys, Talley et al. reported a prevalence of ‘chronic diarrhea’, defined as loose, watery stools often and/or stool frequency of more than three stools per day, of between 4 and 5% in a predominantly middle-aged white population without the presence of abdominal pain, and of between 7 and 14% in those with abdominal pain (i.e., ‘functional bowel disease’) [13]. Other studies have reported the combined prevalence in a general population of irritable bowel syndrome with predominant diarrhea (IBS-D) and functional diarrhea using the Rome II questionnaire with figures of 3.3% in China [14], 8.8% in Norway [15], and 13.5% in Canada [16]. More recently, the prevalence of chronic diarrhea in adults, defined as types 6 or 7 rating on the BSFS, was 6.6% [95% confidence interval (CI) 5.8, 7.4] in a nationally representative sample of US adults [17]. In this study, after a multivariable analysis, women were 1.7 times more likely to have chronic diarrhea than men (P = 0.001). The prevalence of chronic diarrhea also increased with increasing age (P < 0.001). The most recent and largest epidemiologic study performed by experts of the Rome Foundation (https://theromefoundation.org/) included 73,076 adult respondents from 33 countries in whom the diagnosis of IBS-D and functional diarrhea was raised in the internet survey (54,127 respondents) in 1.2% (1.1–1.3) and 4.7 (4.5–4.9), respectively [18]. In this study, prevalence rates were substantially increased for women with IBS-D and for men with functional diarrhea, and health-related quality of life was lower compared to those without these disorders.

Chronic diarrhea has a broad differential diagnosis, including both organic and functional disorders of the gut, as well as a growing list of drugs/herbal medications and systemic disorders like diabetic neuropathy or systemic sclerosis [1, 12, 19, 20]. Among organic gut disorders, the main causes include infection, particularly persistent travelers’ diarrhea, celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, microscopic colitis, bile acid-induced diarrhea, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, carbohydrate malabsorption, exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, bowel resection, radiation enteritis, and colon cancer [21, 22]. Among functional bowel disorders, functional diarrhea and IBS-D are the leading disorders associated with chronic diarrhea.

Management of chronic diarrhea depends greatly on the identification of the causative problem and comprehension of the underlying pathophysiology, which usually relies on a work-up for chronic diarrhea including personal and family history, careful review of current medications, physical examination, laboratory, microbiological and hydrogen breath tests, and imaging and endoscopic techniques [22]. When the cause is identified, specific diet and therapy aimed at the underlying pathophysiology are initiated. If not treatable with specific therapy, chronic diarrhea often needs long-term symptomatic empiric antidiarrheal therapy, where opiate antidiarrheals and bile acid sequestrants remain as the mainstay, to mitigate symptoms in most patients. However, long-term use of these drugs may lead to misuse and abuse, which has been related to serious heart problems in the case of loperamide (https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-drug-safety-communication-fda-warns-about-serious-heart-problems-high-doses-antidiarrheal), and to common side effects and interference with nutrient, vitamin, and drug absorption in the case of cholestyramine https://www.drugs.com/sfx/cholestyramine-side-effects.html).

Definition of Mucoprotectans and Rationale for Their Use in the Management of Chronic Diarrhea

Antidiarrheal drugs can be broadly defined as agents that minimize the symptoms of diarrhea by improving stool consistency, reducing stool frequency, or reducing stool weight by specific or ill-defined/nonspecific mechanisms of action [23]. The category of agents used for nonspecific treatment of diarrhea includes adsorbents, minerals, stool texture modifiers, and mucoprotectants that work intraluminally to modify enteric contents.

A recent review and one meta-analysis report the clinical efficacy of gelatin tannate (GT) [24], xylogucan (XG), and other mucoprotectants [25] for acute diarrhea in children and adults. Therefore, this review focuses on chronic diarrhea in adults, and on the rationale for using mucoprotectants as an alternative or complementary therapy for dealing with chronic diarrhea and major associated symptoms.

Mucoprotectans are products that share the ability of creating a film-forming barrier over the intestinal mucosa, helping to reduce the effect of pathogens and to improve the function of the intestinal barrier (Fig. 1). Several mucoprotectant products, classified as medical devices classes IIa or III, have been approved in European countries, Israel, and Turkey for the restoration of the physiological functions of the intestinal wall and the treatment of diarrhea. Similarly, GT has been approved as a drug or as intermediate agent for the treatment of diarrhea in Mexico, and in some countries in Africa and south-east Asia. Other agents, such as bismuth subsalicylate (BSS) and smectite, may also show barrier-enhancing properties and, therefore, are included in this review.

Fig. 1
figure 1

Mechanism of action of mucoprotectants. When the mucus layer is damaged, access by pathogens, toxins, allergens, and irritants across the intestinal barrier is granted, which may enhance intestinal epithelial permeability and inflammatory and immune responses of resident immunocytes within the lamina propria. This response, in turn, may lead to further distortion of intestinal permeability and perpetuation of mucosal low-grade inflammation, increasing apposition/communication between immune cells, such as mast cells and plasma cells, and nerve endings, neuronal plasticity, and regeneration affecting the enteric nervous system (ENS) and afferent routes to the central nervous system (CNS). Mucoprotectans like xyloglucan and gelatin tannate share mucoadhesive properties and the ability of creating a film-forming barrier over the intestinal mucosa or protect the mucus layer, helping to preserve intestinal permeability and avoid or decrease mucosal inflammation, reducing the effect of noxious agents on the intestinal barrier. Other molecules, such as bismuth subsalicylate or smectite, may protect the mucus layer via complex mechanisms

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The intestinal barrier consists of a series of contiguous layers, beginning on the lumenal surface with the commensal microbiota and the mucus layer, extending to the columnar epithelium and extracellular matrix which lie beneath them, and, ultimately, to the lamina propria along with its constituent blood and lymph vessels as well as intrinsic and extrinsic nerve terminals. Enterocytes are characterized by their apical brush border membrane, shaped by ~ 1000 microvilli that cover the surface of each cell. Each microvillus is 1–2 μm long and has a diameter of 100–150 nm [26], rendering a physical and functional barrier with an area of exposure of 30–40 m2 [27]. This barrier separates the intestinal lumen from the internal milieu, secreting antimicrobial peptides and restricting the passage of potentially harmful or antigenic molecules across it, while maintaining nutrient and electrolyte absorption, the transport of macromolecules, and the control of inflammation [28]. Considerable evidence now supports the existence of multidirectional communication between these layers [29].

A viscoelastic mucus gel layer with hydrophobic and surfactant properties, secreted by the goblet cells, covers the entire intestinal mucosal surface [30]. Normal mucus is totally transparent and microscopically invisible, as it is made up of more than 98% water, the rest being glycosylated proteins (mucins) and glycolipids. In the small and large intestines, mucin 2 (MUC2) is the most abundant mucus protein secreted by the goblet cells. Intestinal epithelial cells also express transmembrane mucins (MUC1, MUC3, MUC4, MUC12, MUC13, MUC17, and MUC21) [26] that remain attached to the apical surface and form the glycocalyx together with glycolipids and are > 80% carbohydrate [30]. Secretory mucins contain cysteine-rich sequences, located in the – and C-terminal regions, which allow the formation of disulfide bridges to form large polymers that are of paramount importance for protection of the gastrointestinal tract. Recent investigations have shown that mucus is resynthesized almost two times in the colon during the average lifetime of gastrointestinal epithelial cells [31], which is the organ with the highest turnover rate in the body, estimated to be between 3 and 5 days [32]. The protein turnover of both epithelial cells and mucus in the gastrointestinal tract is coordinated by the microbiota [31]. Other components of mucus include phospholipids, while other major mucus proteins are secreted by the goblet cells, including calcium-activated-1, Fc globulin binding protein, and zymogen granule protein 16 [33], plus a variety of trefoil factors and other antimicrobials, such as secretory IgA [34], cathelicidins, lysozyme, and defensins produced by enterocytes and Paneth cells [35].

The distal colonic mucus can be divided into an outer layer, colonized by bacteria, and a mostly sterile inner layer. In the distal colon, the inner mucus layer is dense and firmly attached to the epithelium, which is approximately 50–100 μm thick, with an outer layer, which is loose and movable, and about 700–800 μm thick in rats and humans [33, 36, 37]. The small intestine has only one mucus layer, which is much thinner than the mucus layer in the large intestine (Fig. 2a, b). In the cecum, it seems that there are breaches in the mucus layer that may allow contact between bacteria and epithelial cells, similar to what happens in inflammatory bowel disease [38].

Fig. 2
figure 2

Ultrastructural images of a normal mucus layer in the rat ileum and colon. a Representative electron scanning micrograph aspect of the mucus layer of the terminal ileum of an adult Wistar rat (magnification ×397). (Courtesy Dr. Maria Vicario.) b Representative electron scanning micrograph aspect of the mucus layer of the colon of an adult Wistar rat (magnification ×500). (Courtesy Dr. Maria Vicario)

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The mucus layer prevents adhesion and invasion by pathogenic microbes, and represents the habitat for the commensal gut bacteria that also help to limit the colonization by pathogenic microorganisms. Mucus helps to regulate gut permeability and protects the epithelial lining from luminal shear forces, the toxic effects of dietary components, various chemicals, and radiation, as well as the impact of antigens present in the intestinal lumen [39, 40]. The mucus layer also contributes to the retention of mucosal secretions containing digestive enzymes and helps to sustain epithelial hydration [41]. Mucus seems to enhance oral tolerance by imprinting dendritic cells with anti-inflammatory properties [42], participates in epithelial renewal, differentiation, and integrity, and also interacts with other biological processes [43]. The importance of the mucus layer is reflected in studies performed in MUC2 knockout mice, in which bacteria are in direct contact with the epithelium leading to increased intestinal permeability and the spontaneous and aggravated chemically-induced development of colonic macroscopic inflammation [44,45,46]. Similarly, in patients with active ulcerative colitis, the inner mucus layer is highly penetrable to bacteria [45, 46]. The small intestine is more exposed to the intestinal bacteria, as the mucus layer is unattached and permeable. However, fewer microbes reside in the small intestine [47] due to the fast transit time (0.5–5 h) and a high concentration of antimicrobial peptides.

Just beneath the mucus layer, epithelial cells remain tightly sealed at the basolateral surface, the paracellular space, by means of the apical junctional complex [48]. This complex is composed of tight junctions (TJs), adherens junctions (AJs), and desmosomes. Three transmembrane proteins are common to all TJs: claudins, MARVEL domain proteins, and junctional adhesion molecules (JAMs) [49]. The claudin family consists of 26 members which regulate paracellular permeability in the gastrointestinal tract. Among claudins, claudin 2 and interleukin (IL)-13 regulate the pore pathway to form size (4–5 Å at the villus tip; 20 Å at the base) and charge selective ion channels with high capacity of transport [50]. Claudin-2 expression results in increased paracellular Na+ and K+ conductance and water flux without any effect on Cl− conductance or paracellular flux of larger solutes, including mannitol, lactulose, and 4 kD dextran[51]. The tight-junction-associated marvel proteins occludin, tricellulin, and marvelD3 are tetra-membrane spanning proteins that regulate the recruitment of signaling complex proteins to TJs, and cooperate in the development and regulation of macromolecular flux through the leak pathway along with zonula occludens (ZO)-1, ZO-2, and ZO-3, and cingulin [46, 52]. JAM-A, -B, and -C are similar to immunoglobulin-G and may play important roles in barrier formation and signaling to circulating cells. AJs are located below TJs and are mainly composed of e-cadherin, catenin, and actin filaments. Alterations in intestinal permeability have been linked to the disappearance of key structural proteins of the intestinal epithelial barrier, and to be characteristic features of several chronic inflammatory disorders, including inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease, intestinal graft versus host disease, critically ill patients, enteric infections, and infestations, human immunodeficiency virus infection, and acquired immune deficiency syndrome, IBS-D, asthma, autism, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, eczema, psoriasis, eosinophilic esophagitis, environmental enteropathy, kwashiorkor, fibromyalgia, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, multi-organ failure syndrome (shock, burns, trauma), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, alcoholic cirrhosis, obesity, metabolic syndrome, pancreatitis, and rheumatoid arthritis, among others [53].

When understanding the concept of low-grade mucosal inflammation associated with disorders of chronic diarrhea, it is important to again consider the histological structure of the gut wall. The deepest layer of the intestinal barrier is the lamina propria that contains effector cells of both adaptive and innate immune systems, T and B lymphocytes, IgA-secreting plasma cells, mast cells, dendritic cells, and macrophages. The loss of epithelial integrity facilitates antigen, chemical, and toxin penetration into the lamina propria, which triggers immunological responses that, in turn, increase epithelial permeability to luminal content, thereby promoting inflammation. Indeed, several common gastrointestinal and systemic disorders associated with chronic diarrhea share alterations in the gut epithelial barrier, leading to abnormal intestinal permeability, detachment of mucous layer, intestinal dysbiosis, and, ultimately, low-grade mucosal inflammation [33, 54]. Numerous studies have provided evidence of increased numbers of immunocytes in the lamina propria of diarrheal diseases (mainly mast cells, eosinophils, and T cells), such as IBS-D, ulcerative colitis, or microscopic colitis [55,56,57,58].

In addition to infectious agents, there are several predisposing factors for mucus damage and intestinal leakiness that are commonly involved in the development of chronic diarrhea and mucosal inflammation. Among these, environmental stress, pregnancy, endurance exercise, drugs and antibiotics, genetic susceptibility, alcohol, and western diet, particularly dietary emulsifiers and surfactants in food additives, should be considered when evaluating and treating patients with chronic diarrhea [33, 59,60,61,62,63,64].

Therefore, agents such as mucoprotectans, due to their mucoadhesive and film-forming barrier characteristics, may offer advantages for the prevention of barrier abnormalities and restoration of the mucus layer and altered intestinal permeability to reduce mucosal inflammation and gut mucosal homeostasis.

Mucoprotectants

Bismuth Subsalicylate

BSS is an insoluble salt of salicylic acid and trivalent bismuth that was first FDA-approved in 1939 and can be considered as a mucosal protector with approved indications for the treatment of diarrhea, heartburn, indigestions, nausea, and stomach upset [65]. The mechanism of action is complex and partly unknown, and involves the gastric hydrolysis into bismuth, and salicylic acid [66]. The salicylate compound is almost completely absorbed into the bloodstream, while bismuth remains in the lumen of the gastrointestinal tract to form other bismuth salts [67]. These bismuth salts show bactericidal and antimicrobial activity [66, 68], prevent bacteria from binding and growing on the mucosal cells, inhibit intestinal secretions, promote fluid, sodium, and chloride absorption [69], reduce inflammation via cyclooxygenase inhibition [70, 71], and decrease proliferative actions of non-amidated gastrins in the rectal mucosa of Sprague–Dawley rats and mice [72], playing a major role in combating diarrhea.

Xyloglugan

XG is a non-ionic, water-soluble, high molecular weight branched polysaccharide hemicellulose (MW: 1331 Kda) [73] that carries xylose and galactosyl–xylose substituents, extracted from the most abundant source of XG and soluble fiber in nature, the seeds of the tamarind tree (Tamarindus indica) [74, 75] (Fig. 3). XG is nontoxic, edible, biocompatible, bioavailable, with versatile use in foods, and resistant to digestive enzymes, reaching the colon unaltered, where it is partially broken down to oligosaccharides by bacterial endo-ß-glucanases, followed by bacterial fermentation of oligosaccharides [76,77,78]. The ‘mucin-like' molecular structure of XG is known to possess mucomimetic, mucoadhesive, and pseudo-plastic properties [73, 79]. In the gut, it acts as a film-forming barrier over the intestinal mucosa, helping to reduce permeability changes and invasion by pathogens like E. coli and to decrease cholera toxin-induced intestinal secretion in Caco2/goblet cells [80,81,82], preserving tight junctions [75], and binding consistently to MUC1 in molecular docking studies and decreasing the expression of MUC1 and MUC2, as shown in mice treated with dextran sodium sulfate (DSS) [73]. Both XG and GT pretreatment reduced the severity of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/induced mucosal inflammation and jejunal hyperpermeability in male Wistar rats, although they did not prevent LPS-induced occludin and JAM-A down-regulation. Further, GT and XG limited bacterial mucus layer invasion and contact between bacteria and intestinal epithelium [83]. XG is often combined with gelatin or gelose to prolong its availability within the intestine, but showing similar protective effects as XG alone on barrier function and intestinal inflammation in rats after LPS administration [84] and Salmonella enterica and Enterococcus hirae infections [85]. In preliminary results, a single intracolonic administration combination of XG with Bifidobacterium animalis was found to be effective in inducing mucosal healing in patients with ulcerative colitis [86]. The combination of XG, pea proteins, and tannins from grape xylo-oligosaccharides also offered protection against stress-induced visceral hypersensitivity and intestinal hyperpermeability in rats [87].

Fig. 3
figure 3

Basic molecular structure of hemicellulose. Xyloglucan from tamarind seeds consists of four types of oligosaccharides as repeating units, commonly as heptasaccharides [155]. The monomer unit contains three types of sugars: xylose, galactose,+ and glucose. The configuration of this polysaccharide gives the product a “mucin-like” molecular structure, thus conferring optimal mucoadhesive properties [75]

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Gelatin Tannate

GT is a complex of tannic acid (penta-m-digallolyl glucose) and gelatin which forms electrostatic bonds with mucin creating a protein-based biofilm on the intestinal mucosa [88, 89]. Gelatin is a collagen derivate, which is ingested as a powder that is insoluble at gastric acidic pH, and which becomes a gelatin with the increase of pH over 5.5 [90]. This complex enters the intestine unaltered, increasing the epithelial resistance against E. coli infection [91], helping to restore the normal physiology of barrier function, also reducing inflammation in response to lipopolysaccharide administration in rats [92]. GT also helps to restore the mucus layer and to modulate the intestinal microbiota in the DSS-induced model of murine colitis [93], and in Caco cells [94], where it acts in part by preventing the release of intercellular adhesion molecule-1, IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor-α induced by LPS [95]. Furthermore, the astringent properties of tannins allow the precipitation of pro-inflammatory molecules from the intestinal mucus and their fecal elimination [96, 97]. Together, these effects may explain, at least in part, the protective effect of GT on intestinal barrier function.

Dioctahedral Smectite or Diosmectite

Diosmectite (DS) is a medicinal clay and a product frequently recommended over-the-counter in Eastern European countries [98], France [99], and China [100] as an adjuvant therapy in children and adults with acute diarrhea. It is administered to reduce stool output, providing symptomatic relief, and possibly preventing dehydration [101]. It is formed from sheets of aluminum and magnesium silicate. The mechanism of action is thought to be the result of: anti-inflammatory activity; modifications of the rheological characteristics of the gastrointestinal mucus barrier to reduce penetration of toxins and adsorptive properties; reduction of intestinal permeability and apoptosis; and improved intestinal epithelial cells proliferation, via modulation of IL-8, transforming growth factor, extracellular signal-regulated kinase ½, and protein kinase B signaling pathway, and MUC2 expression [102, 103], thereby reducing stool output and stress-induced visceral hypersensitivity. These mechanisms have been replicated, mainly in vitro, in Caco-2 and HT-29 cell lines, and in vivo in rodent and piglets animal models [104,105,106,107,108,109], and the results may be improved by combination with Lactobacillus acidophilus [110].

Methods

We searched MEDLINE and EMBASE via OVID, from 1977 to January 2021 using a combination of MeSH terms, EMTREE terms, and keywords developed for each database. We also conducted a search for all English language articles, systematic reviews, meta-analysis, conference proceedings, and abstracts in relevant scientific meetings, on the epidemiology, etiology, physiopathology, and management of chronic and persistent diarrhea in immunocompetent individuals using the search terms: persistent diarrhea, chronic diarrhea, infectious diarrhea, enteric infection, epidemiology, treatment, management, guidelines, adults, mucus, intestinal permeability, xyloglucan, gelatin tannate, bismuth subsalicylate, diosmectite, smectite, and mucoprotectans. Bibliographies of review and meta-analysis articles were used to identify additional sources. Websites for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, US Food and Drug Administration, and World Health Organization were also accessed for any additional information related to this topic.

All studies were reviewed and summarized by two independent reviewers to determine their eligibility. Only primary studies conducted on human adult subjects (18 years and older) presenting with chronic diarrhea with observed parameters directly related to diarrhea were included.

This article is based on previously conducted studies and does not contain any new studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.

Results

Available studies were read and summarized, and the study design, population, parameters observed, and outcomes documented (Table 1).

Table 1 Studies involving mucoprotectans in the management of chronic diarrhea in adults
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BSS in Chronic/Persistent Diarrhea in Adults

Chronic/persistent diarrhea occurs in approximately 3% of individuals traveling to developing countries, and in more than 10% of patients suffering acute infectious enteritis [111]. The microbiologic causes include parasitic (e.g., Giardia, Cryptosporidium, Schistosoma mansoni) and bacterial (e.g., enteroaggregative E. coli, Shigella, Campylobacter, Salmonella) pathogens [21]. BSS has demonstrated effectiveness in the prevention of traveler's diarrhea [112, 113] and in the treatment of acute diarrhea [114]. For traveler's diarrhea in adult patients with mild symptoms [115, 116], BSS has been shown to decrease stool frequency, time to symptom relief, need for intravenous rehydration, and work absenteeism in comparison to placebo or antibiotics. However, there are no studies on the effect of BSS on chronic/persistent diarrhea after acute infectious enteritis. Considering the efficacy of BSS in the management of acute diarrhea and the increasing prevalence of postinfective diarrhea and antibiotic resistance among diarrheal pathogens [117], it would be wise to perform additional studies to evaluate the efficacy and safety of BSS in the management of postinfective diarrhea.

Both IBS-D and microscopic colitis (MC) are common causes of chronic diarrhea in adults. One open-label study showed that the combination of BSS and spasmolytics during 3 weeks improved bowel symptoms in IBS-D, including diarrhea in a small group of patients (n = 20) [118]. BSS is recommended by the 2016 AGA guideline as a second-line therapy for MC when budesonide is unable to be used, either due to cost or adverse effects [119]. This is based on two small studies that found that treatment with BSS for 8 weeks reduced the frequency and weight of bowel movements, improved stool consistency, and decreased tissue inflammation in patients with MC [120, 121]. A retrospective study showed complete response in 53% of patients and partial response in 28% of patients taking three tablets (262 mg each) of bismuth salicylate three times a day [122]. Chronic diarrhea is a common manifestation of a variety of cancers that can be attributed to adverse effects of treatments, radiotherapy, surgery, and infection. One prospective pilot study revealed that the duration of diarrhea experienced by lymphoma patients receiving melphalan chemotherapy was decreased as compared to the placebo group, while this did not happen in multiple myeloma patients irrespective of treatment [123]. However, this article has been retracted by the journal because major findings could not be replicated upon reanalysis [124]. Though anecdotical, a recent case report showed a good temporal response of diarrhea in a COVID-19-positive Crohn’s disease patient treated with BSS [125].

Limitation to its use in chronic diarrhea relate to the number of daily tablets needed to treat, to the compromised absorption of other compounds and to the restricted use in patients with renal impairment [126]. BSS is safe, relatively cheap, and has limited side effects, yet tinnitus, blackened tongue and dark feces are not unusual in short-term therapy and make its use undesirable for some patients [124]. Although quite rare, the most concerning adverse effect of BSS is salicylate and bismuth non-eurotoxicity that primarily occurs in patients who have taken bismuth subsalicylate inappropriately, whether through an overdose or for extended periods of time [127].

XG in Chronic/Persistent Diarrhea in Adults

Several clinical trials have been reported on the efficacy of XG in the treatment of acute diarrhea in children [128, 129] and adults [81]. However, there are limited data regarding its use in chronic diarrhea. One recent multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, crossover clinical trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of a commercially available combination of XG, pea protein, and tannins from grape seed extract, and xylo-oligosaccharides in patients with IBS-D [130]. The study showed that, at day 28, the therapeutic combination of XG normalized stool consistency in a significantly higher proportion of patients as compared to placebo (87 vs. 0%; P = 0.0019), and, after the crossover, at day 56, the effect of XG was reproduced (93% vs. 23%; P = 0.0001). This benefit remained present at day 116 of follow-up (67% vs. 13%) with no significant adverse events. In most cases, remission of diarrhea symptoms was apparent within 15 days of starting treatment. A therapeutic gain was also observed for abdominal pain and bloating.

Another study assessed other precursor medical device containing other film-forming agents, reticulated proteins, in combination with a prebiotic mixture of vegetable oligo- and poly-saccharides, in patients with IBS-D [131]. After 8 weeks of treatment, remission of diarrhea, defined as two or less non-watery stools emissions per day (stool of type 5 or less on the BSFS) was achieved in 76.19% in the active group vs. 47.69% in the placebo group (P < 0.0001). In addition, bowel frequency (P = 0.001), abdominal pain (P = 0.0167), and flatulence (P = 0.0373) were all significantly improved in patients in the active group as compared with placebo at 56 days of follow-up. A significant increase in the quality of life was also detected in the active group at day 56 (P < 0.0001 vs. placebo). No major adverse events were recorded and treatment was well tolerated.

In conjunction, these results support the use of the use of XG reticulated protein and oligo- and polysaccharides in the treatment of chronic diarrhea, at least in IBS-D patients.

GT in Chronic/Persistent Diarrhea in Adults

Similar to XG, several clinical trials have been reported on the use of GT in the treatment of acute diarrhea in children [90, 132,133,134,135,136,137,138], and adults [139, 140], with conflictive results on the efficacy as published in three different meta-analysis [24, 141, 142]. Unfortunately, we have not found studies with GT in adult patients with chronic diarrhea. Although, the combination of GT and tyndallized probiotics has been claimed as highly effective in the treatment of moderate and prolonged diarrhea [143, 144], there is so far no clinical evidence to support this. However, a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, clinical trial investigating the efficacy and safety of gelatin tannate and tyndallized acid lactic bacteria versus placebo administered to adult patients with chronic diarrhea with dysbiosis is ongoing (ISRCTN63068134).

DS in Chronic/Persistent Diarrhea in Adults

The potential utility of DS in the management of chronic diarrhea is based on its efficacy as shown in a number of open [145,146,147] and randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled [104, 148,149,150,151] clinical trials performed mostly in children with acute diarrhea, and highlighted in a recent Cochrane review [101]. One open, randomized, controlled trial compared the efficacy of 3 g of dioctahedral smectite/8 h versus a commercial mixture of probiotics containing L. bifidus, acidophilic lactobacilli and Enterococcus in the management of chronic functional diarrhea in a large group of participants, during 28 consecutive days [152]. As soon as 2 weeks from the beginning of treatment, smectite was shown to be significantly superior to probiotics in reducing bowel frequency (P = 0.007), and this gain was maintained over the treatment period and during the follow-up period of 2 weeks. A similar significant benefit for smectite over probiotics was shown for stool consistency at 2 weeks of treatment and remained for the 28 days (P = 0.001), but the benefit disappeared after discontinuation. No serious adverse effects were reported. Another prospective controlled randomized trial study compared DS against loperamide for 2 weeks in the management of chronic functional diarrhea. This study showed a similar efficacy of both drugs for the control of diarrhea while DS was superior to loperamide in the control of pain and bloating [153]. Another randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, showed no benefit of DS over placebo in improving bowel frequency, consistency, urgency and mucus discharge in IBS-D after 8 weeks of treatment [154]. However, DS significantly improved abdominal pain, bloating, and the overall visual analogue scale score of IBS. No serious adverse effects were reported. However, three patients were hospitalized during the trial (two in the placebo group because of cellulitis and acute appendicitis; one in the DS group because of renal stone). Constipation was the most common effect related to DS treatment, but its occurrence was not different from placebo. Other recorded adverse effects were similar in both groups: nausea, abdominal pain, and dyspepsia.

Summary and Conclusions

There are many available drugs for the treatment of chronic diarrhea. The majority of them target specific mechanisms/pathways involved in the origin of diarrhea. However, it is common for many disorders associated with chronic diarrhea, particularly (but not only) for the very prevalent IBS-D and functional diarrhea, that their development involves multiple or unidentified mechanisms. Among these mechanisms, the impairment of the intestinal barrier with changes in epithelial permeability, mucus layer, and immune activation deserves special focus because they have been increasingly implicated in the initiation and perpetuation of a variety of diseases, thereby justifying the emerging interest in the advent of new pharmacological/non-pharmacological approaches for the restoration of barrier function.

Much of this work relates to the use of mucosal protectors, as a new alternative or complementary therapy for a more efficient and safe control of symptoms in disorders associated with chronic diarrhea, mostly in IBS-D. The objective of mucosal protection is to create an artificial mechanical barrier over the mucosa, to reduce contact/access between noxious allergens, irritants, toxins, pathogens, and their virulence factors and the mucosal immune system, to prevent mucus damage and preserve intestinal permeability. The need of these barrier enhancers, some marketed as medical devices, is also supported in the current context of high levels of antimicrobial resistance and to avoid long-lasting pharmacological treatments, their adverse events, and frequent elevated costs. In adults with chronic diarrhea, the studies available to date suggest that these mucoprotectants can be helpful, improving stool frequency and consistency, and showing beneficial effects on other symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, and flatulence. Importantly, they appear to be safe, with few adverse events, although some caution is advised on the chronic use of BSS and tannins and on their potential interference with the mechanism of action of other drugs. In addition, it is currently unclear whether the use of mucoprotectans is cost-effective, partly because some of them (xyloglucan, gelatin tannate, and disomectite) are sold over the counter and not covered by health insurance or public health systems, and partly because the lack of high-quality evidence. However, there are a number of limitations to the available data. There is a paucity of studies and several of them have been criticized because they were reported only as abstracts or posters, and many were observational in design and did not include a control group, rendering a low quality of evidence due to imprecision, inconsistency, and risk of bias when defining diarrhea characteristics across studies, yet this criticism may be limited due to heterogeneity in some outcomes [142]. In addition, the evidence provided relates mostly to IBS-D, which may not be applicable to other disorders with chronic diarrhea. Finally, it is important to note here that, while some of these products are marketed as mucoprotectans, the mechanism by which they protect the mucosa is not well established, just as it is not well established that mucoprotection is the mechanism by which chronic diarrhea is ameliorated. In conclusion, although mucoprotectans are promising, there is a clear need for additional randomized controlled trials in large and controlled populations assessing clinically relevant outcomes to further explore their effects and confirm their usefulness in the treatment of chronic diarrhea. Microbiological analysis of fecal and mucosal samples would also provide useful information about their effects on intestinal microbiota, particularly in patients with dysbiosis. In addition, clinical, functional, and laboratory evaluation of their effects on intestinal permeability and mucus integrity is also warranted to ascertain their in vivo ability to restore these functions and to extend their use in the management of a variety of gastrointestinal diseases associated with ‘leaky gut.’