BACKGROUND Previous meta-analyses reported that probiotics improve the effectiveness of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication during antibiotic therapy, while results regarding a possible reduction of side effects remained inconclusive. Moreover, the effectiveness of different strains of probiotics has not been studied so far. It is further conceivable that probiotics will produce additio...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Diverticular disease is a common gastrointestinal condition. Low-grade inflammation and altered intestinal microbiota have been identified as factors contributing to abdominal symptoms. Probiotics may lead to symptoms improvement by modifying the gut microbiota and are promising treatments for diverticular disease. The aim of this study was to systematically review the effic...

BACKGROUND Up to 60% of foals develop diarrhea within 6 months after birth. Preventive measures are limited but potentially probiotics could be used. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of a newly designed probiotic on the incidence of foal diarrhea in a randomized field trial. ANIMALS Seventy-two healthy neonatal foals. METHODS Randomized, placebo-controlled field trial. Foals were administ...

BACKGROUND Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is the most common serious acquired disease of the gastrointestinal tract in preterm infants. Probiotic bacteria are live microbial supplements that colonize the gastrointestinal tract and potentially provide benefit to the host. OBJECTIVE To compare the efficacy and safety of prophylactic enteral probiotics administration versus placebo or no treatm...

BACKGROUND & AIMS Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is associated with a poor prognosis in patients with advanced liver disease. Probiotics alter the intestinal microbiota with non-urease-producing organisms that reduce production of ammonia. We investigated the efficacy of probiotics for the primary prophylaxis of HE. METHODS We conducted a prospective trial at a tertiary care referral institute i...

BACKGROUND The burden of acute gastroenteritis on children and their families continues to be enormous. Probiotics, defined as viable microbial preparations that have a beneficial effect on the health of the host, represent a rapidly expanding field. Although clinical trials in children with gastroenteritis have been performed, most have significant flaws, and guidelines do not consistently end...

BACKGROUND In February 2008, the results of the PRObiotics in PAncreatitis TRIAl (PROPATRIA) were published. This study investigated the use of probiotics in patients suffering from severe acute pancreatitis. No differences between the groups were found for any of the primary endpoints. However, mortality in the probiotics group was significantly higher than in the placebo group. This result wa...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this literature review is to identify the role of probiotics in the management of enteral tube feeding (ETF) diarrhoea in critically ill patients. BACKGROUND Diarrhoea is a common gastrointestinal problem seen in ETF patients. The incidence of diarrhoea in tube fed patients varies from 2% to 68% across all patients. Despite extensive investigation, the pathogenesis surrou...

BACKGROUND During acute pancreatitis (AP), oxidative stress contributes to intestinal barrier failure. We studied actions of multispecies probiotics on barrier dysfunction and oxidative stress in experimental AP. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Fifty-three male Spraque-Dawley rats were randomly allocated into five groups: 1) controls, non-operated, 2) sham-operated, 3) AP, 4) AP and probiotics...

Background: Gut microbiota play an important role in the inflammation. This study aimed to investigate whether exogenous probiotics could improve intestinal barrier function effect via attenuating inflammation and immunomodulation clinical outcomes critically ill patients.