Study design (if review, criteria of inclusion for studies)
prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled, cross-over study
Participants
19 CF children
Interventions
LGG for 6 months and then shifted to oral rehydration solution (ORS) for 6 months. In parallel 19 received ORS and then shifted to LGG.
Outcome measures
incidence of pulmonary exacerbations and of hospital admissions, forced expiratory volume (FEV1), and modifications of body weight.
Main results
Patients treated with LGG showed a reduction of pulmonary exacerbations (Median 1 vs. 2 , range 4 vs. 4, median difference 1, CI 95% 0.5-1.5; p=0.0035) and of hospital admissions (Median 0 vs. 1, range 3 vs. 2, median difference 1, CI 95% 1.0-1.5; p=0.001) compared to patients treated with ORS. LGG resulted in a greater increase in FEV1 (3.6% +/- 5.2 vs. 0.9% +/- 5; p=0.02) and body weight (1.5 kg +/- 1.8 vs. 0.7 kg +/- 1.8; p=0.02).
Authors' conclusions
LGG reduces pulmonary exacerbations and hospital admissions in patients with CF. These suggest that probiotics may delay respiratory impairment and that a relationship exists between intestinal and pulmonary inflammation.