A new analysis of randomized controlled trials evaluating probiotics in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) has found that Bifantis, Bifidobacterium infantis 35624, the sole ingredient in Align (manufactured by Procter & Gamble), is the only probiotic currently able to demonstrate significant improvement in IBS symptoms based upon a properly designed research study.
Researchers at the University of Michigan conducted the review to evaluate the safety, efficacy and tolerability of probiotics for IBS in randomized controlled trials and found that, with the exception of the Bifidobacterium infantis 35624 studies, most were not designed in a way that made the data possible to validate. The review data were presented this week at the annual American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) conference taking place in Philadelphia, PA.
“There is growing interest in medical and patient communities about the use of probiotics in IBS and lots of data has been published about this topic, but it's helpful to know the quality of that data before making a treatment decision,” said Darren Brenner, MD, lead investigator on this project. “Our analysis showed that only this particular strain of probiotic, Bifidobacterium infantis 35624, has valid data for successfully treating IBS symptoms. At this point, we just don't have enough valid data to determine if other probiotics are effective for IBS.”
The goal of this systematic review of randomized controlled trials was to evaluate the efficacy, safety and tolerability of probiotics in the treatment of IBS. Criteria for the study included randomized controlled trials testing adults with IBS symptoms using single or combination probiotics versus placebo for IBS symptoms and frequency of adverse events.