Clinical trial NCT00893711: Lactobacillus Reuteri Versus Placebo in the Treatment and Prevention of Infantile Colic
Official title: Lactobacillus Reuteri Versus Placebo in the Treatment and Prevention of Infantile Colic: a Clinical and Microbiological, Double-blind, Prospective, Randomised, Controlled Study
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: UNKNOWN
Phase: NA
Conditions: Infantile Colic
Keywords: infantile colic
lactobacillus
gut microflora
FISH
toll like receptor
T reg
messenger RNA
CC-chemokine receptor 7
interleukin 10
Lead sponsor: Azienda Ospedaliera Ospedale Infantile Regina Margherita Sant'Anna
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2009-05-06
Enrollment: 155
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 4
Maximum age (years): 16
Standard ages: CHILD
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: The purpose of this study is:

* to study the intestinal microflora of colicky infants before and after L. reuteri or placebo administration, evaluating the effect of Lactobacillus reuteri on the growth of the main intestinal microbiota (coliforms, Clostridium butyricum, Lactobacilli, Bifidobacteria) with fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) technique or with Real-Time PCR Taqman; Further, the global intestinal microflora composition, using large-scale DNA sequencing of 16S rRNA genes ( 454-pyrosequencing technique.
* to evaluate the improvement of colicky symptoms by the oral administration of Lactobacillus reuteri (primary outcome: reduction of the daily average crying time from baseline to the end of the treatment period, to less than 3 hours a day, the cut-off proposed by Wessel; secondary outcome: number of responders versus non-responders in each group at the end of the treatment).
* to evaluate fecal calprotectin values at the beginning and at the end of the study. BÜHLMANN Quantum Blue® Calprotectin High Range (Schönenbuch, Switzerland). A quantitative immunoassay.
* to evaluate Th17/Treg balance at time 0 and t 30 ( days) investigating mRNA FOXP3 and RORγ in peripheral blood using RT-PCR Real Time Taqman.
* the measurement of the expression level of CC-chemokine receptor 7 messenger RNA using the real-time TaqMan reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction method.
* the measurement of expression of interleukin 10 (IL-10) messenger RNA using the real-time TaqMan reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction method.
* Parental satisfaction at the end of the study period ( 30 day ) with a numerc scale from 1 to 10.

Detailed description: Infantile colic is one of the most common problems within the first three months of life. It consists of a behavioural syndrome characterised by paroxysmal, excessive and inconsolable crying without identifiable cause. Although infantile colic is commonly reported and causes appreciable distress for both parents and paediatricians, despite forty years of research, its aetiology still remains unclear. Recently the role of intestinal microflora has growing importance, and a lower count of intestinal lactobacilli has been observed in colicky infants compared to healthy ones. In a recent study we have observed that Lactobacillus reuteri improved colicky symptoms in breast-fed infants within one week of treatment compared to Simethicone, suggesting that probiotics may play a role in infantile colic (Savino F, Pelle E, Palumeri E, Oggero R, Miniero R.Lactobacillus reuteri (American Type Culture Collection Strain 55730) versus simethicone in the treatment of infantile colic: a prospective randomized study. Pediatrics 2007; 119:e124-30). The mechanism involved in such finding is only partially understood and, for this reason, we have planned this new study to evaluate not only the clinical improvement but also the microbiological data.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* clinical diagnosis of infantile colic according to Wessel's criteria
* gestational age between 37 and 42 weeks
* age between 4 and 16 weeks
* birth weight between 2500 and 4000 g
* exclusively breastfed

Exclusion Criteria:

* clinical evidence of chronic illness or gastrointestinal disorders
* administration of probiotics and antibiotics

Primary outcomes:
measure: Reduction of the daily average crying time from baseline to the end of the treatment period, to less than 3 hours a day, the cut-off proposed by Wessel and number of responders versus non-responders in each group at the end of the treatment
timeFrame: time 0 - 7 - 21 - 30 days
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Responders to treatment
timeFrame: 30 day
measure: To analyze intestinal microflora
timeFrame: day 0 and day 30
measure: Assay of Th17/Treg balance
timeFrame: time 0- 30 days
Other outcomes:
measure: Preventive effects of L.reuteri on infantile colic
timeFrame: 5 months
measure: Fecal calprotectin values
timeFrame: 0-30 days
measure: Parental satisfacion
timeFrame: day 30
Locations:
city: Torino
country: Italy
facility: Ospedale Infantile Regina Margherita
state: TO
city: Torino
country: Italy
facility: Ospedale Infantile Regina Margherita
city: Torino
country: Italy
facility: Ospedale Infantile Regina Margherita
Study officials:
affiliation: Ospedale Infantile Regina Margherita - Dipartimento di Pediatria.S.S.D. SAPI, Torino
name: Francesco Savino, MD, PhD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Savino F. Focus on infantile colic. Acta Paediatr. 2007 Sep;96(9):1259-64. doi: 10.1111/j.1651-2227.2007.00428.x.
citation: Savino F, Pelle E, Castagno E, Palumeri E, Oggero R. Must infants with colic really be hospitalized? Acta Paediatr. 2007 Jul;96(7):1109; author reply 1110. doi: 10.1111/j.1651-2227.2007.00328.x. Epub 2007 May 10. No abstract available.
citation: Savino F, Pelle E, Palumeri E, Oggero R, Miniero R. Lactobacillus reuteri (American Type Culture Collection Strain 55730) versus simethicone in the treatment of infantile colic: a prospective randomized study. Pediatrics. 2007 Jan;119(1):e124-30. doi: 10.1542/peds.2006-1222.
citation: Savino F, Grassino EC, Guidi C, Oggero R, Silvestro L, Miniero R. Ghrelin and motilin concentration in colicky infants. Acta Paediatr. 2006 Jun;95(6):738-41. doi: 10.1080/08035250500522654.
citation: Savino F, Palumeri E, Castagno E, Cresi F, Dalmasso P, Cavallo F, Oggero R. Reduction of crying episodes owing to infantile colic: A randomized controlled study on the efficacy of a new infant formula. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2006 Nov;60(11):1304-10. doi: 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602457. Epub 2006 May 31.
citation: Savino F, Castagno E, Bretto R, Brondello C, Palumeri E, Oggero R. A prospective 10-year study on children who had severe infantile colic. Acta Paediatr Suppl. 2005 Oct;94(449):129-32. doi: 10.1111/j.1651-2227.2005.tb02169.x.
citation: Savino F, Cresi F, Castagno E, Silvestro L, Oggero R. A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial of a standardized extract of Matricariae recutita, Foeniculum vulgare and Melissa officinalis (ColiMil) in the treatment of breastfed colicky infants. Phytother Res. 2005 Apr;19(4):335-40. doi: 10.1002/ptr.1668.
citation: Savino F, Bailo E, Oggero R, Tullio V, Roana J, Carlone N, Cuffini AM, Silvestro L. Bacterial counts of intestinal Lactobacillus species in infants with colic. Pediatr Allergy Immunol. 2005 Feb;16(1):72-5. doi: 10.1111/j.1399-3038.2005.00207.x.
citation: Savino F, Cresi F, Pautasso S, Palumeri E, Tullio V, Roana J, Silvestro L, Oggero R. Intestinal microflora in breastfed colicky and non-colicky infants. Acta Paediatr. 2004 Jun;93(6):825-9.
citation: Savino F, Garro M, Montanari P, Galliano I, Bergallo M. Crying Time and RORgamma/FOXP3 Expression in Lactobacillus reuteri DSM17938-Treated Infants with Colic: A Randomized Trial. J Pediatr. 2018 Jan;192:171-177.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2017.08.062. Epub 2017 Sep 29.
citation: Roos S, Dicksved J, Tarasco V, Locatelli E, Ricceri F, Grandin U, Savino F. 454 pyrosequencing analysis on faecal samples from a randomized DBPC trial of colicky infants treated with Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938. PLoS One. 2013;8(2):e56710. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0056710. Epub 2013 Feb 28.