SynthesisPediatric research2023
Bifidobacterium infantis as a probiotic in preterm infants: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Pediatric research, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers, 2 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
26 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 34 citations in OpenAlex.
- The effectiveness of treatment with probiotics in preventing necrotizing enterocolitis and related mortality: results from an umbrella meta-analysis on meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials.BMC gastroenterology · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Trial
- Bifidobacterium modulates gut microbiota and aryl hydrocarbon receptor signaling in necrotizing enterocolitis rat model.Pediatric research · 2026Article
- Modulating the gut-joint axis: Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis B8762 is associated with selective gut microbial and metabolic alterations in knee osteoarthritis.World journal of microbiology & biotechnology · 2026Article
- Probiotics reduce the severity of DSS-induced colitis in aged mice by enhancing intestinal barrier function and modulating gut microbiota.GeroScience · 2026Article
- Branched chain amino acid metabolism and microbiome in adolescents with obesity during weight loss therapy.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2026Observational
- Gut microbial differences and function in infants with gastroschisis: a pilot prospective cohort study.Beneficial microbes · 2026Article
- Clostridium Butyricum and Bifidobacterium Supplementation Ameliorates Gut Dysbiosis and Cognitive-Anxiety Behaviors in Preterm Mice.Probiotics and antimicrobial proteins · 2026Article
- A Review of Probiotic Interventions for Necrotizing Enterocolitis and Sepsis in Preterm Infants.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Efficacy of probiotic-supplemented formula in treating chronic diarrhea in children aged 6-43 months: evidence based on a randomized controlled trial.Gut pathogens · 2026Article
- Probiotics in breast-fed healthy term infants: imperative or superfluous?Pediatric research · 2026Article
- Impact of ABO blood group on NEC incidence and mortality in VLBW infants.Pediatric research · 2026Article
- Neonatal faecal abundance ofGut microbiome (Cambridge, England) · 2026Article
- Mechanisms by which tryptophan metabolites enhance intestinal barrier function to prevent necrotizing enterocolitis in preterm infants.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Synbiotic effects of 2'-fucosyllactose andFrontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
- Dynamics of postnatal upper airway bacteria colonization in preterm infants <1000g and bronchopulmonary dysplasia.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Impact of early life antibiotic and probiotic treatment on gut microbiome and resistome of very-low-birth-weight preterm infants.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Bifidobacterium longum subsp infantis (EVC001) is associated with reduced incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis stage ≥2 and bloody stools in premature babies.Journal of perinatology : official journal of the California Perinatal Association · 2025Article
- Synbiotic modulation of adult gut microbiome by 2'-fucosyllactose andMicrobiome research reports · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundBifidobacterium infantis has special abilities to utilise human milk oligosaccharides. Hence we hypothesised that probiotic supplements containing B. infantis may confer greater benefits to preterm infants than probiotic supplements without B. infantis.
methodsA systematic review with meta-analysis was conducted according to standard guidelines. We selected RCTs evaluating probiotics compared to placebo or no treatment in preterm and/or low birth weight infants. Probiotic effects on Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC), Late Onset Sepsis (LOS) and Mortality were analysed separately for RCTs in which the supplemented probiotic product contained B. infantis and those that did not contain B. infantis.
results67 RCTs were included (n = 14,606), of which 16 used probiotics containing B. infantis (Subgroup A) and 51 RCTs did not (Subgroup B) Meta-analysis of all RCTs indicated that probiotics reduced the risk of NEC, LOS, and mortality. The subgroup meta-analysis demonstrated greater reduction in the incidence of NEC in subgroup A than subgroup B [(relative risk in subgroup A: 0.38; 95% CI, 0.27-0.55) versus (0.67; 95% CI, 0.55-0.81) in subgroup B; p value for subgroup difference: 0.01].
conclusionsThese results provide indirect evidence that probiotic supplements that include B. infantis may be more beneficial for preterm infants. Well-designed RCTs are necessary to confirm these findings. IMPACT: Evidence is emerging that beneficial effects of probiotics are species and strain specific. This systematic review analyses if B. infantis supplementation provides an advantage to preterm infants. This is the first systematic review evaluating the effects of probiotics containing B. infantis in preterm infants. The results of this systematic review provides indirect evidence that probiotics that include B. infantis may be more beneficial for preterm infants. These results will help in guiding future research and clinical practice for using B. infantis as a probiotic in preterm infants.
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.