SynthesisPloS one2014
The effect of probiotics supplementation on Helicobacter pylori eradication rates and side effects during eradication therapy: a meta-analysis.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 57 papers, 5 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
57 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 162 citations in OpenAlex.
- Probiotics and gastrointestinal disorders: an umbrella meta-analysis of therapeutic efficacy.European journal of medical research · 2025Pooled it
- The effects of probiotics supplementation on Helicobacter pylori standard treatment: an umbrella review of systematic reviews with meta-analyses.Scientific reports · 2024Pooled it
- AGA Clinical Practice Update on the Management of Refractory Helicobacter pylori Infection: Expert Review.Gastroenterology · 2021Guideline
- Probiotic supplementation does not improve eradication rate of Helicobacter pylori infection compared to placebo based on standard therapy: a meta-analysis.Scientific reports · 2016Pooled it
- Comparative effectiveness and tolerance of treatments for Helicobacter pylori: systematic review and network meta-analysis.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2015Pooled it
- Vonoprazan-Amoxicillin Dual Therapy with or WithoutInfection and drug resistance · 2026Trial
- Trial
- Effects of probiotics or broccoli supplementation on Helicobacter pylori eradication with standard clarithromycin-based triple therapy.The Korean journal of internal medicine · 2020Trial
- Two-week bismuth-containing quadruple therapy and concomitant therapy are effective first-line treatments forWorld journal of gastroenterology · 2019Trial
- Functional and flavour-enhancing properties of Staphylococcus sp. from Napham.NPJ science of food · 2026Article
- Aroma compound production and probiotic functionality of Bacillus paralicheniformis isolates from Berma, a fermented fish product of Tripura, India.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Washed microbiota transplantation is associated withFrontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Update on the pathogenesis and clinical management ofWorld journal of gastrointestinal pathophysiology · 2025Review
- The effects of postbiotics and glycyrrhetinic acid on immune response and inflammation-related genes during H. pylori eradication therapy.BMC microbiology · 2025Article
- Investigating the probiotic and flavor-producing functions of Bacillus sp. FPIK1 sourced from fermented bamboo shoots of Assam.Microbial cell factories · 2025Article
- Probiotic and aroma-producing Bacillus sp. isolates from teles, a traditional fermented fish from Assam, India: functional characterisation and potential application in fermented foods.BMC microbiology · 2025Article
- Probiotics as Adjuvants to StandardMicroorganisms · 2025Review
- Bifidobacteria in antibiotic-associated dysbiosis: restoring balance in the gut microbiome.World journal of microbiology & biotechnology · 2025Review
- Care-Seeking Action after Helicobacter pylori Testing among a High-Risk Indigenous Population: A Cross-Sectional Study Follow-up.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2025Article
- Therapeutic advances and future directions inFrontiers in microbiology · 2025Review
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 2 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPrevious 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 additional effects only if antibiotics are relatively ineffective.
methodsThis meta-analysis includes eligible randomized controlled trials examining effects of probiotics supplementation on eradication rates (ER) and side effects, published up to May 2014. Sub-group analysis was performed to compare different probiotic strains and antibiotic therapies with different effectiveness in controls (ER <80% vs.>80%). Publication bias was assessed with funnel plots and Harbord's test. The quality of the trials was assessed with the Cochrane risk of bias tool.
resultsThirty-three RCTs involving a total of 4459 patients met the inclusion criteria in case of eradication rates of which 20 assessed total side effects in addition. Overall, the pooled eradication rate in probiotics supplementation groups was significantly higher than in controls (ITT analysis: RR 1.122, 95% CI 1.086-1.159, PP analysis: RR 1.114, 95% CI 1.070-1.159). Sub group-analysis could, however, confirm this finding only for four individual strains (Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei DN-114001, Lactobacillus gasseri, and Bifidobacterium infantis 2036) and for relatively ineffective antibiotic therapies. There was a significant difference between groups in the overall incidence of side effects (RR 0.735, 95% CI 0.598-0.902). This result was, however, only confirmed for non-blinded trials.
conclusionsThe pooled data suggest that supplementation with specific strains of probiotics compared with eradication therapy may be considered an option for increasing eradication rates, particularly when antibiotic therapies are relatively ineffective. The impact on side effects remains unclear and more high quality trials on specific probiotic strains and side effects are thus needed.
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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.