SynthesisOpen medicine : a peer-reviewed, independent, open-access journal2013
Probiotics for the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea and Clostridium difficile infection among hospitalized patients: systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Open medicine : a peer-reviewed, independent, open-access journal, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 38 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
38 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 93 citations in OpenAlex.
- Efficacy of probiotic supplementation in preventingFrontiers in nutrition · 2026Pooled it
- A practical guide for probiotics applied to the case of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in The Netherlands.BMC gastroenterology · 2018Guideline
- Clinical Practice Guidelines for Clostridium difficile Infection in Adults and Children: 2017 Update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA).Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America · 2018Guideline
- Comparison of pediatric and adult antibiotic-associated diarrhea and Clostridium difficile infections.World journal of gastroenterology · 2016Pooled it
- Effect of the administration of a probiotic with a combination of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains on antibiotic-associated diarrhea.Revista espanola de quimioterapia : publicacion oficial de la Sociedad Espanola de Quimioterapia · 2019Trial
- Patient with Inflammatory Bowel Disease in a Dental Office-Which Antibiotic to Choose?-Narrative Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- Article
- Impact of Acid Suppressants on the Development ofInfection and drug resistance · 2025Article
- TwoInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2024Article
- Prospective Use of Probiotics to Maintain Astronaut Health during Spaceflight.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- A Single-Center, Retrospective Cohort Study Evaluating the Use of Probiotics for the Prevention of Hospital-OnsetHospital pharmacy · 2023Article
- The impact of early-life antibiotics and probiotics on gut microbial ecology and infant health outcomes: a Pregnancy and Birth Cohort in Northwest China (PBCC) study protocol.BMC pediatrics · 2022Article
- Review
- Article
- Physician Perceptions on the Use of Antibiotics and Probiotics in Adults: An International Survey in the Asia-Pacific Area.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2021Article
- Prevention ofMicroorganisms · 2020Review
- Gut Microbiota Modulation: Implications for Infection Control and Antimicrobial Stewardship.Advances in therapy · 2020Review
- Treatment of Clostridioides difficile Infection and Non-compliance with Treatment Guidelines in Adults in 10 US Geographical Locations, 2013-2015.Journal of general internal medicine · 2020Article
- Guidelines forPrzeglad gastroenterologiczny · 2020Article
- Probiotics in the next-generation sequencing era.Gut microbes · 2020Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAntibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) and Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) are associated with high morbidity, mortality, and health care costs. Probiotics may mitigate the existing disease burden. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the efficacy of co-administration of probiotics with antibiotics in preventing these adverse outcomes in adult inpatients.
methodsSystematic searches of MEDLINE (1946 to May 2012), Embase (1980 to May 2012), and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were undertaken on May 31, 2012, to identify relevant publications. We searched for randomized controlled trials, published in English, of adult inpatients who were receiving antibiotics and who were randomly assigned to co-administration of probiotics or usual care, with or without the use of placebo. Studies were included if they reported on AAD or CDI (or both) as outcomes. Data for predetermined criteria evaluating study characteristics, methods, and risk of bias were extracted. Trials were given a global rating of good, fair, or poor by at least 2 reviewers. Meta-analyses were performed using a random-effects model, and pooled relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.
resultsSixteen trials met the criteria for inclusion in this review. Four studies were of good quality, 5 were of fair quality, and 7 were of poor quality. Pooled analyses revealed significant reductions in the risks of AAD (RR 0.61, 95% CI 0.47 to 0.79) and CDI (RR 0.37, 95% CI 0.22 to 0.61) among patients randomly assigned to co-administration of probiotics. The number needed to treat for benefit was 11 (95% CI 8 to 20) for AAD and 14 (95% CI 9 to 50) for CDI. With subgroup analysis, significant reductions in rates of both AAD and CDI were retained in the subgroups of good-quality trials, the trials assessing a primarily Lactobacillus-based probiotic formulation, and the trials for which the follow-up period was less than 4 weeks.
interpretationProbiotics used concurrently with antibiotics reduce the risk of AAD and CDI.
Indexed as
Identifiers
24348885PMC3863752W2124239976What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.