Limited data on probiotics to prevent antibiotic-induced diarrhea in kids

Do probiotics prevent antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children?

Probiotics appear to prevent antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children. However, the limited number of trials included in this study, their overall limited quality, and the potential for publication bias suggest that the data are too limited for certainty. (LOE = 1a-)

Szajewska H, Ruszczynski M, Radzikowski A. Probiotics in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. J Pediatr 2006;149:367-372.  [PMID:16939749]

Meta-analysis (randomized controlled trials)

Unknown/not stated

Various (meta-analysis)

These authors searched multiple databases to find randomized controlled trials of probiotics (live microbial food ingredients) for the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Two reviewers independently evaluated each article for inclusion and extracted the data. They resolved any discrepancies through discussion. The authors classified studies as being at low-, medium-, high-, or very high-risk for bias. The authors don't describe looking for unpublished studies. They ended up with 6 trials with a total of 766 patients (range = 18-269). After extracting the data, the authors conclude that probiotics reduce the risk of diarrhea and that we would need to treat 7 children to prevent 1 case of diarrhea.