Probiotics for the Prevention of<i>Clostridium difficile</i>–Associated Diarrhea
Authors: David Louis Keller
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2013)

Letters7 May 2013Probiotics for the Prevention of Clostridium difficile–Associated DiarrheaDavid Louis Keller, MD, MSDavid Louis Keller, MD, MSFrom Providence Medical Institute, Torrance, California.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-158-9-201305070-00017 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:As a primary care physician, I recognize the need for evidence-based measures to reduce the likelihood of Clostridium difficile–associated diarrhea in patients receiving antibiotics. Johnston and colleagues' review (1) presents a strong case for probiotic prophylaxis, so I decided to select a probiotic to use in my practice from the list of those tested in trials included in the meta-analysis.The study by Gao and colleagues (2) had the heaviest weighting in the meta-analysis, at 23%, with the next heaviest-weighted study at 16.1% and the rest of the studies weighted in single digits. They reported a relative ...References1. Johnston BC, Ma SS, Goldenberg JZ, Thorlund K, Vandvik PO, Loeb M, et al. Probiotics for the prevention of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Intern Med. 2012;157:878-88. [PMID: 23362517] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Gao XW, Mubasher M, Fang CY, Reifer C, Miller LE. Dose-response efficacy of a proprietary probiotic formula of Lactobacillus acidophilus CL1285 and Lactobacillus casei LBC80R for antibiotic-associated diarrhea and Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea prophylaxis in adult patients. Am J Gastroenterol. 2010;105:1636-41. [PMID: 20145608] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Bio-K Plus Bio K Acidophilus 50 Billion. Amazon.com. Accessed at www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005HJMGCE/ on 1 January 2013. Google Scholar4. Efficacy and Safety Study in the Prevention of Antibiotic-Associated Diarrhea (AAD) and Clostridium difficile-Associated Diarrhea (CDAD) in Hospitalized Adult Patients Exposed to Nosocomial Infection. Accessed at www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00958308 on 1 January 2013. Google Scholar5. Areddy JT, Grimaldi JV. Defying Mao, rich Chinese crash the communist party. The Wall Street Journal. 29 December 2012. Accessed at www.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323723104578187360101389762.html on 3 April 2013. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From Providence Medical Institute, Torrance, California.Disclosures: None disclosed. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoProbiotics for the Prevention of Clostridium difficile–Associated Diarrhea Bradley C. Johnston , Stephanie S.Y. Ma , Joshua Z. Goldenberg , Kristian Thorlund , Per O. Vandvik , Mark Loeb , and Gordon H. Guyatt Probiotics for the Prevention of Clostridium difficile–Associated Diarrhea Steven Oscherwitz Probiotics for the Prevention of Clostridium difficile–Associated Diarrhea Bradley C. Johnston , Joshua Z. Goldenberg , and Gordon H. Guyatt Metrics 7 May 2013Volume 158, Issue 9Page: 706KeywordsClostridiumConflicts of interestDiarrheaPenicillinProbioticsProphylaxisRisk managementScientists ePublished: 7 May 2013 Issue Published: 7 May 2013 CopyrightCopyright © 2013 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF DownloadLoading ...