Probiotics May Confer Some Protective Benefit Against CDI In Clinical Settings, Review Finds

Infectious Disease Advisor (8/1, Basilio) reported a systemic review and meta-analysis of four studies found that “probiotics may confer some protective benefit against Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) in hospitalized patients, but their use as a primary prevention measure is not significant in clinical settings.” Researchers observed that “the pooled incidence of CDI was reduced among patients in the probiotic vs placebo group. However, the researchers noted significant heterogeneity across studies, possibly due to varying sample sizes, demographics, and study designs. Despite these findings, forest plot data indicated probiotics may result in reduced CDI incidence in adult inpatients.” In addition, “a sensitivity analysis of randomized controlled trials indicated no significant reduction in CDI incidence with the use of probiotics vs placebo. The researchers also noted moderate heterogeneity.” The review was published in Infection.