Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41597541›Full record

ReviewMicroorganisms2025

Efficacy and Safety of Probiotics in Children with Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Marisa Piccirillo, Erika Renzi, Corrado De Vito, Maurizio Mennini, Giacomo Giarrusso, Giorgia Gallo, Giovanna Quatrale, Marco Bianchi, Marco Graziani, Francesca Caron and 3 more

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Microorganisms, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

13 authors.

Marisa PiccirilloDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0009-0001-4903-8718
Erika RenziDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-9760-0245
Corrado De VitoDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-7846-672X
Maurizio MenniniDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0003-4000-6004
Giacomo GiarrussoDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.
Giorgia GalloDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.
Giovanna QuatraleDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-6729-5630
Marco BianchiDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0009-0004-7247-0092
Marco GrazianiDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.
Francesca CaronDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.
Alessandro FerrettiDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-3854-9299
Pasquale ParisiDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-9042-8120
Giovanni Di NardoDepartment of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-9026-7758

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a disorder of gut-brain interaction (DGBI), whose exact etiology remains unclear. The "brain-gut-microbiota axis" proved to be a key target in IBS management and there is strong evidence supporting the use of probiotics for improving overall symptoms both in adults and in children. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the effects of probiotic supplementation in pediatric patients diagnosed with IBS according to Rome III or IV criteria. Scopus, PubMed, and Cochrane Library were the available databases systematically searched up to February 2025. Six RCTs with 604 participants were included in the final systematic review. Three RCTs provided data from which the meta-analysis demonstrated that probiotic supplementation has a significant effect on reducing abdominal pain in patients with IBS (SMD -0.95, 95% CI -1.63 to -0.27). Other three RCTs reported data on the effects on stool consistency, and their meta-analysis proved that supplementation results in stool consistency normalization in patients with diarrhea or constipation (OR 2.17, 95% CI 1.18 to 4). The present meta-analysis demonstrated that probiotic supplementation can reduce abdominal pain in pediatric patients with IBS and provide significant bowel habit normalization in patients with diarrhea or constipation at baseline compared to placebo.

Indexed as

abdominal painchildrenirritable bowel syndromeprobiotics

Identifiers

PMID41597541
PMCPMC12844155

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.