Probiotic Supplementation and Late-Onset Sepsis in Preterm Infants: A Meta-analysis.

Late-onset sepsis (LOS) is a major cause of mortality and morbidity in preterm infants. Despite various preventive measures, its incidence continues to remain high, hence the urgent need for additional approaches. One such potential strategy is supplementation with probiotics. The updated Cochrane Review (2014) did not find benefits of probiotics in reducing the risk of LOS in preterm infants (19 studies, N = 5338). Currently there are >30 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of probiotics in preterm infants that have reported on LOS.