Probiotic Supplement Benefits Preterm Infant Health

by | Oct 24, 2016 | 2016, Infant and Children's Health, Probiotics

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. A 2016 study demonstrated that of the 10,890 infants, those who were given a combination of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium infantis had a significant 52 % reduced risk of developing necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC); a 49% reduced risk of death after contacting NEC and an 11% reduced risk of blood stream infections compared to preterm infants who did not receive probiotics.  

women's healthA health concern in infants who are born before term (“preterm infants”) is having a low birth weight. A birth weight less than 1,500 grams is classified as “very low birth weight” and weight less than 1,000 grams is classified as “extremely low birth weight”. These infants are at high risk of developing two life-threatening complications: a digestive illness called necrotizing enterocolitis and bloodstream infections 1.

These two illnesses carry a high risk of death, with necrotizing enterocolitis having a mortality of 14.7% and bloodstream infections having a mortality 1.4% 2. As a result, prevention of these complications is a significant concern.

Fortunately, research now suggests that probiotics may be a benefit for infants. In a 2016 study in Germany 3, researchers studied data on 10,890 preterm infants in 44 neonatal wards that administered a probiotic supplement to infants diagnosed with necrotizing enterocolitis or blood stream infections. The probiotic supplement was called Infloran, a commercially available combination of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium infantis that is licensed by the Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products of the Federal Office of Public Health in Switzerland (#00679) 4. The exact amounts of probiotic in the supplement were not provided.

When compared to neonatal wards that did not use Infloran, wards that did administer Infloran showed a 52% reduced risk of necrotizing enteroclitis (p < 0.05), a 40% reduced risk of overall death (p < 0.05), a 49% reduced risk of death after contracting necrotizing enterocolitis (p < 0.05), and an 11% reduced risk of bloodstream infections (p < 0.05).

When suggesting a mechanism for how the probiotics produce these health benefits in preterm infants of very low or extremely low birth weight, the researchers admitted that it is “unclear” but cite research 5 suggesting that “a healthy gut microbiota established by probiotic treatment prevents complications of preterm infants including necrotizing enterocolitis and bloodstream infections.”

For the researchers, “dual-strain probiotics significantly reduces the incidences of NEC, overall mortality, mortality following necrotizing enterocolitis and bloodstream infections” and that “If these severe complications of preterm birth are to be reduced noticeably, the use of dual-strain probiotics should be considered in standard neonatal care.”

Source: Denkel LA, Schwab F, Garten L, Geffers C, Gastmeier P, Piening B (2016) Protective Effect of Dual-Strain Probiotics in Preterm Infants: A Multi-Center Time Series Analysis. PLoS ONE 11(6): e0158136. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0158136

© 2016 Denkel et al. Creative Commons Attribution License

Click here to read the full text study.

Posted October 24, 2016.

Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Hauppauge, NY.  You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him at PitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.PitchingDoc.com.

References:

  1. Polin RA, Denson S, Brady MT. Epidemiology and diagnosis of health care-associated infections in the NICU. Pediatrics. 2012;129(4):e1104-1109.
  2. Schwab F, Zibell R, Piening B, Geffers C, Gastmeier P. Mortality due to bloodstream infections and necrotizing enterocolitis in very low birth weight infants. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 2015;34(3):235-240.
  3. Denkel LA, Schwab F, Garten L, Geffers C, Gastmeier P, Piening B. Protective Effect of Dual-Strain Probiotics in Preterm Infants: A Multi-Center Time Series Analysis. PloS one. 2016;11(6):e0158136.
  4. Guthmann F, Buhrer C. Routine probiotics in preterm infants? Archives of disease in childhood Fetal and neonatal edition. 2011;96(4):F311-312.
  5. Mai V, Young CM, Ukhanova M, et al. Fecal microbiota in premature infants prior to necrotizing enterocolitis. PLoS One. 2011;6(6):e20647.