Abstract
Background: Probiotics colonise the gut and may exert beneficial effects. The
aim of this study was to assess if probiotics change the spectrum of colonic
microflora in patients with colitis when taken daily for a period of one month
Methods: This is a prospective double blind randomised crossover study.
Patients randomised to Group A received placebo for one month followed
by probiotics for another month. Patients randomised to Group B received
Probiotics during the first month followed by placebo in the next month. Stool
samples were collected at the start, end of first and second month of study.
Terminal-restriction fragment length polymorphism technique (T-RFLP) and
principal component analysis (PCA) on the bacterial community were used to
study the faecal mircoflora.
Results: Sixteen patients completed the study, 8 had Crohn’s disease and 8
had ulcerative colitis. Median age was 62 years (IQR 50–65). An average of 22
T-RF’s was identified in each patient. Dice cluster analysis showed that each
patient had a unique microbial spectrum and did not change significantly at
different points in the study in both groups. T-RF 102bp potential representing
Bacteroides fragilis was the only band that consistently reduced in concentration
during treatment with probiotics but not placebo. The difference was not
statistically significant due to small numbers of patients in the study.
Conclusion: Use of Probiotics is associated with a reduction in prevalence of
Bacteroides fragilis in patients with colitis. This observation might have clinical
implications.
Original language | English |
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Journal | British Journal of Surgery |
Volume | 97 |
Issue number | S2 |
Number of pages | 32 |
ISSN | 0007-1323 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2010 |
Event | Association of Surgeons of Great Britain & Ireland 2010 International Surgical Congress, ‘The Challenges of Surgery,’ - Liverpool, United Kingdom Duration: 14 Apr 2010 → 16 Apr 2010 |
Conference
Conference | Association of Surgeons of Great Britain & Ireland 2010 International Surgical Congress, ‘The Challenges of Surgery,’ |
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Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
City | Liverpool |
Period | 14/04/2010 → 16/04/2010 |