Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29752587›Full record

SynthesisEuropean journal of pediatrics2018

Probiotics for respiratory tract infections in children attending day care centers-a systematic review.

Rikke Pilmann Laursen, Iva Hojsak

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in European journal of pediatrics, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 42 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
42citing papers in PubMed, 7 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

42 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Probiotics for preventing acute upper respiratory tract infections.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2022
    Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. Guideline
  7. Probiotics for preventing acute otitis media in children.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2019
    Pooled it
  8. Trial
  9. Trial
  10. Trial
  11. Trial
  12. Trial
  13. Article
  14. Review
  15. Review
  16. Review
  17. Article
  18. Review
  19. Research progress on the application ofFrontiers in nutrition · 2025
    Review
  20. Is There Evidence to Support Probiotic Use for Healthy People?Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2024
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Rikke Pilmann LaursenDepartment of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Iva HojsakChildren's Hospital Zagreb, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia. ivahojsak@gmail.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3262-5964

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Probiotics have been suggested to have a preventive effect on respiratory tract infections (RTIs), but limited evidence exist on strain-specific effects. The main aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate strain-specific probiotic effects on RTIs in children attending day care. We included 15 RCTs with 5121 children in day care settings (aged 3 months to 7 years), but due to high diversity in reported outcomes, different number of RCTs were available for evaluated outcomes. Twelve RCTs (n = 4527) reported results which could be compared in at least one outcome of the meta-analysis. Compared to placebo, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) significantly reduced duration of RTIs (three RCTs, n = 1295, mean difference - 0.78 days, 95% confidence interval (CI) - 1.46; - 0.09), whereas no effect was found on other evaluated outcomes. Based on the results from two studies (n = 343), Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 showed no effect on duration of RTIs or on absence from day care. Meta-analyses on other strains or their combination were not possible due to limited data and different outcome measures.Conclusion: LGG is modestly effective in decreasing the duration of RTIs. More RCTs investigating specific probiotic strains or their combinations in prevention of RTIs are needed. What is known: • Previously published systematic reviews have suggested that probiotics may have a preventive effect on respiratory infections, but limited data exist on strain specific effects. What is new: • This systematic review showed that use of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG modestly reduces the duration of respiratory tract infections.

Indexed as

Anti-Bacterial AgentsChildChild Day Care CentersChild, PreschoolHumansInfantProbioticsRespiratory Tract InfectionsTreatment OutcomeAnti-Bacterial AgentsAcute otitis mediaChildrenMeta-analysisRCTRespiratory infections

Identifiers

PMID29752587

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.