Scientist - News - 15-10-2008:
«BackScientific meeting confirms positive effect of probiotics on IBS Beintema, Nienke Probiotics featured prominently on the agenda of the 73rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gasteroenterology (ACG). This meeting was held in Orlando, Florida (US), during the first week of October. Several authors presented data suggesting that probiotics are effective in treating irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). More than 10,000 physicians from 80 countries are members of the ACG. The organisation aims to promote the exchange of scientific information on gastrointestinal diseases. It organises annual scientific meetings, publishes the American Journal of Gastroenterology, and provides training courses and research grants. Probiotics were a main agenda item at the 73rd Annual Meeting in October. One of the objectives of the meeting was to review the role of the intestinal flora in diseases such as IBS, and to determine the utility of antibiotics and probiotics for these conditions. Prof. Paul Moayyedi from the McMaster University in Hamilton (US) presented a meta-analysis of the effect of several different probiotics on IBS. His study included 19 randomised controlled trials in 1,628 IBS patients. Moayyedi found that "probiotics are effective in IBS, although we do not have enough information to be sure whether there is one probiotic that is particularly effective or whether combinations of probiotics are required." Dr. Gerald Friedman from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York presented an analysis showing that a multi-strain probiotic was effective in reducing the frequency of diarrhoea in IBS patients. Dr. Stefano Guandalini from the University of Chicago found that the probiotic agent VSL#3 was safe and significantly more effective than the placebo in alleviating IBS-related symptoms in children and teenagers. VSL#3 contains eight strains of probiotic bacteria: Lactobacillus acidophilus, L. caseï, L. plantarum and L. bulgaricus, as well as Bifidobacterium longum, B. breve, B. infantis and Streptococcus thermophilus. Other positive outcomes were also reported, including on: the ability of L. acidophilus and L. caseï to reduce antibiotic-associated diarrhoea; an evidence-based approach to the use of probiotics; and the effect of B. lactis and prebiotic inulin on patients with functional bowel symptoms. More information: American College of Gasteroenterology |