David R. Nalin (born April 21, 1941) is an American physiologist, and Pollin Prize for Pediatric Research and Prince Mahidol Award, a.k.a.
Nalin had the key insight that oral rehydration therapy (ORT) would work if the volume of solution patients drank matched the volume of their fluid losses, and that this would drastically reduce or completely replace the only current treatment for cholera, intravenous therapy.
Nalin led the trials that first demonstrated ORT works, both in cholera patients, and more significantly, also in other dehydrating diarrhea illnesses.
Until the discovery of ORT, the only efficient means of rehydrating a patient suffering from serious dehydration was to provide fluids intravenously.
Indian scientist Hemendra Nath Chatterjee first formulated and demonstrated the effectiveness of Orally Rehydrated Saline (ORS) for diarrhea management.
In January 2007 the Mahidol Medal from His Royal Highness the King of Thailand was presented at a ceremony at the Chakri Throne Hall in Bangkok, in recognition of the discovery and implementation of Oral Rehydration Therapy.
– The Lancet[7] “Which medicine has saved more lives than any other and can be made by anyone in their kitchen, back bedroom, shantytown hut or dwelling built of sticks – as long as they have access to clean water?
Drink……It requires no specialized equipment; uses ingredients that are ubiquitous and have a long shelf life; has few side effects; and can be made up in any quantity – the prefect medicine.” - Jeremy Laurance, British Journalist In October 2006, The Independent, A British newspaper, reported on the greatest achievements in medical science in 150 years.
At the time there was a military draft in the U.S. and many medical students joined the U.S. Public Health Service, including the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, and the Centers for Disease Control's Epidemiological Intelligence Service, where some were shipped overseas to do research or offer medical care.
A person with cholera can lose up to 20 liters a day of water, 10-20% of their body weight, leading to death by dehydration.
Gatorade works based on the same physiological mechanisms as ORT, however, it is NOT a substitute for ORT in diarrhea cases because it is formulated for healthy athletes, chiefly to replace sweat loss, not for sick children or adults who have diarrhea, which is significantly different in composition, and which requires a different solution.
In order to make it easier for busy Americans to take, Abbot Laboratories created a ready mixed ORT drink for diarrhea, available in a bottle, called Pedialyte.
1973 - Dr Nalin established and served at the Johns Hopkins Center for Medical Research in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
2007 - Dr. Nalin received the Mahidol Medal from His Royal Highness the King of Thailand, presented at a ceremony at the Chakri Throne Hall in Bangkok.
Worldwide experience with the CR326F-derived inactivated hepatitis A virus vaccine in pediatric and adult populations: an overview.
Nalin DR, Kuter BJ, Brown L, Patterson C, Calandra GB, Werzberger A, Shouval D, Ellerbeck E, Block SL, Bishop R, et al. J Hepatol.