Pediatric patients receiving antibiotics13
|
Probiotics versus placebo |
Benefits: decreased incidence of antibiotic-associated diarrhea |
Moderate |
Risk of some adverse effects in immunocompromised, severely debilitated and other patients |
Adults and children receiving antibiotics17
|
Probiotics versus placebo or no treatment |
Benefit: decreased incidence of adverse events relating to Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea |
Moderate |
No benefit regarding incidence of Clostridium difficile infection |
Adults, children and the elderly15
|
Probiotics versus placebo |
Benefit: decreased incidence of upper respiratory tract infections, duration of episodes, need for antibiotics and missing school due to colds |
Very low to low |
No difference in adverse events |
Patients undergoing liver transplantation16
|
Prebiotics alone or plus probiotics versus selective bowel decontamination; Prebiotics plus probiotics versus prebiotics |
Benefits: prebiotics plus probiotics decreased the proportion of participants with infections and the number of infectious episodes |
Very low |
No benefit regarding mortality, need for retransplantation, graft rejection, intensive care unit stay or hospital stay |
Patients after liver resection9
|
Probiotics alone or plus prebiotics versus placebo or prebiotics plus probiotics postoperatively |
No benefit regarding mortality |
Low |
Patients with quiescent ulcerative colitis20
|
Probiotics versus placebo or mesalazine |
No benefit regarding prevention of relapses and adverse events |
Low |
Patients undergoing ileal pouch-anal anastomosis for chronic ulcerative colitis10
|
Probiotics versus placebo or other treatment |
No benefit regarding prevention of pouchitis. |
Very low |
Patients susceptible to urinary tract infection and healthy people19
|
Probiotic versus placebo; probiotics versus antibiotics; probiotic versus no treatment |
No benefit regarding symptomatic bacterial urinary tract infection |
Low |
Patients receiving mechanical ventilation11
|
Probiotics versus placebo |
Benefit: decreased incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia |
Very low to low |
No effects regarding intensive care unit mortality, in-hospital mortality, incidence of diarrhea, length of intensive care unit stay, duration of mechanical ventilation or antibiotic use |
Women with HIV-infection for prevention of vulvovaginal candidiasis23
|
Probiotics versus placebo or clotrimazole |
No benefit regarding prevention of vulvovaginal candidiasis infection |
Low |
Infants with family history of allergy or food hypersensitivity and healthy infants12
|
Probiotics alone or plus prebiotics versus placebo |
Benefit: decreased incidence of infant eczema |
Not assessed |
No benefit regarding food hypersensitivity, asthma, atopic eczema, allergic rhinitis, food allergy or urticaria |
Pregnant women without metabolic or chronic diseases8
|
Probiotics versus placebo or diet |
Benefit: probiotics decreased both the rate of gestational diabetes mellitus and the birthweight |
Not assessed |
No benefit regarding death (abortion, intrauterine fetal death, stillbirth or neonatal death), risk of premature birth or cesarean delivery rate |
Patients with Crohn’s disease18
|
Probiotics versus placebo or other treatment |
No benefit regarding reduction of the risk of relapse after surgically-induced remission, compared with use of aminosalicylates or azathioprine. |
Not assessed |
Risk of some adverse effects from Lactobacillus GG
|
Infants born at gestational age of less than 37 weeks or weighing less than 2500 g at birth, or both14
|
Probiotics versus placebo or no treatment |
Benefit: decreased incidence of severe necrotizing enterocolitis and mortality among preterm infants |
Not assessed |
No effect regarding nosocomial sepsis |
Patients undergoing surgery related to Crohn’s disease21
|
Probiotics versus placebo |
No benefit regarding clinical recurrence, severe endoscopic recurrence or any endoscopic recurrence |
Not assessed |
Pregnant women22
|
Probiotics versus placebo or acetic acid |
Benefit: decreased risk of vaginal infection |
Not assessed |
No effect regarding prevention of preterm birth |