Clinical Follow-up of 96 Patients Affected by Irritable Bowel Syndrome Treated with a Novel Multi-strain Symbiotic

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a very common chronic functional disorder of the lower gastrointestinal tract. It tipically includes chronic and/or recurrent abdominal pain/discomfort, which can be relieved by defecation, and alteration of stool form or frequency. Probiotics have been proposed as a therapeutic approach in several pathologic conditions of the gastrointestinal tract associated with dysbiosis, including IBS. In this observational study we investigated the efficacy of a symbiotic formulation (SynGutTM), composed of four probiotic strains and the prebiotic inulin, in the treatment of adult subjects affected by IBS. Seventy-one out of 96 patients reported an improvement of IBS symptoms, 19 of them reporting a substantial improvement. Two patients discontinued the treatment after a few days because of worsening of symptoms, but no serious adverse effects were reported. In the subgroup of patients (n = 18) who underwent faecal calprotectin dosage, this marker of gut inflammation was significantly decreased (127,3 vs 78,6, p < 0,0001) after two months of treatment respect to baseline. Our data confirm that this multi-strain symbiotic is well tolerated, and support the hypothesis that this symbiotic could improve IBS symptoms. Further studies and randomized trials with larger patient populations are needed to confirm this positive effect with particular focus on strain-specific outcomes, usefulness of concomitant prebiotic and probiotic supplementation, dose optimization, and other relevant manufacturing specifications.