ArticleElectronic physician2016
A multi-strain Synbiotic may reduce viral respiratory infections in asthmatic children: a randomized controlled trial.
Article in Electronic physician, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 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
13 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 29 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effects of probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics and postbiotics on pediatric asthma: a systematic review.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Pooled it
- Probiotics for children with asthma: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2025Pooled it
- The Effects of Prebiotics, Synbiotics, and Short-Chain Fatty Acids on Respiratory Tract Infections and Immune Function: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2022Pooled it
- Probiotics for preventing acute otitis media in children.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2019Pooled it
- Intestinal Microbiota in Early Life: Latest Findings Regarding the Role of Probiotics as a Treatment Approach for Dysbiosis.Nutrients · 2025Review
- Development and clinical assessment of a novel probiotic candy in the prevention of respiratory infections in asthmatic children.The World Allergy Organization journal · 2025Article
- Review
- Applications of Probiotic-Based Multi-Components to Human, Animal and Ecosystem Health: Concepts, Methodologies, and Action Mechanisms.Microorganisms · 2022Review
- Probiotics in Children with Asthma.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Ingestion, Immunity, and Infection: Nutrition and Viral Respiratory Tract Infections.Frontiers in immunology · 2022Review
- Microbiome First Medicine in Health and Safety.Biomedicines · 2021Review
- Alveolar Macrophages Are Key Players in the Modulation of the Respiratory Antiviral Immunity Induced by Orally AdministeredFrontiers in immunology · 2020Article
- The Modulation of Mucosal Antiviral Immunity by Immunobiotics: Could They Offer Any Benefit in the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic?Frontiers in physiology · 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
8 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
objectiveAsthma is a growing problem worldwide. Acute exacerbations impose considerable morbidity, mortality, and increased cost. Viral respiratory infections are the most common cause (80-85%) of pediatric asthma exacerbations and admissions to the hospital. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of a new synbiotic Lactocare® on viral respiratory infections and asthma exacerbations in asthmatic children.
methodsIn this double blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial, 72 children with mild persistent asthma, aged between 6 and 12 years, were randomized to receive either Lactocare®, a Synbiotic containing 1 billion CFU/Capsule of Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Streptococcus thermophilus, Bifidobacterium breve, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium infantis, Lactobacillus bulgaricus, and Fructooligosacharide (Zist Takhmir, Tehran, Iran) or placebo daily for 60 days. The primary outcome was the number of viral respiratory infections, and secondary outcomes were school absence, salbutamol and prednisolone usage, outpatient visits, and hospital admission for asthma. The outcomes were compared among study groups using the SPSS 11.5 program and the Mann Whitney and Fisher exact tests.
resultsOf the 72 children who were enrolled with mild persistent asthma, 36 were assigned randomly to be treated with synbiotic and 36 with placebo. The number of viral respiratory infections was significantly higher in placebo group than the synbiotic group during the first month of intervention (0.74 ± 0.12 vs. 0.44 ± 0.1, p < 0.007) but not during the second month (0.5 ± 0.8 vs. 0.5 ± 0.8, p < 0.641). Considering the total duration of the study (two months), infection episodes also were significantly lower in the synbiotic group (0.92 ± 0.15 vs. 0.69 ± 0.11, p < 0.046). Salbutamol consumption was significantly lower in the synbiotic group, but there were no significant differences in school absenteeism, oral prednisolone use, outpatient visits, or hospital admissions.
conclusionThis new synbiotic (a mixture of seven probiotic strains plus fructooligosacharide may reduce episodes of viral infection in asthmatic children.
trial registrationThis study is registered in Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials with registration number of IRCT201509234976N3.
fundingThis research was supported financially by the Research Council of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences (Grant Number: 911048).
Indexed as
Identifiers
What 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.