Oral rehydration therapyOral Rehydration Therapy for Diarrheal Diseases: A 50-Year Perspective. Roger I. Glass, Barbara J. Stoll. JAMA August 17, 2018 Although ORT was saving lives in low- and middle-income countries, the United States and many high-income countries resisted its adoption even though childhood diarrheas were responsible for 10% to 12% of hospitalizations of children younger than 5 years and for untold numbers of physician and clinic visits. In 1992, after years of controversy over the domestic use of ORS, the CDC recommended that ORS should be the treatment of choice for all US children with diarrhea.