Probiotics May Stabilize Microbes during H.pylori Treatment

A slew of gastric problems are caused by the Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) organism: chronic gastritis, gastroduodenal ulcers, and gastric cancer. Traditional treatment includes two antibiotics, amoxicillin and clarithromycin) and proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs). Because antibiotics kill even beneficial bacteria, side effects ensue. Researchers Bumjo Oh and colleagues asked what effect  antibiotics in combination with probiotics would have on microbes. The abstract appears as The Effect of Probiotics on Gut Microbiota during the Helicobacter pylori Eradication: Randomized Controlled Trial in a publication titled Helicobacter in September 2015.

The study:

• Two groups: one with antibiotics only and the other received antibiotics and probiotics.
• Fecal samples were collected and DNA analysis completed.

Results:

• Three phyla, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Proteobacteria, were predominant in the gut microbiota of all subjects.
• Post-treatment:Firmicutes were reduced in both
• Post-treatment: Proteobacteria were increased in both groups
• BUT the changes were less evident in the probiotics group.
• Antibiotic-resistant bacteria were higher in the group without the probiotics.

The authors concluded: “Probiotic supplementation can reduce the antibiotic-induced alteration and imbalance of the gut microbiota composition. This effect may restrict the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the gut and improve the H. pylori eradication success rate.”

Time to put probiotic therapy to work against this tough organism.