More Studies Needed on Diarrhea, Probiotics Link

PARIS--Lactobacillus acidophilus did not improve incidence of travelers' diarrhea for those backpacking through West Africa and other destinations, according to researchers from the Department of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, Hopital St. Antoine, Paris. In a double blind, placebo-controlled trial published in the journal of Clinical Infectious Diseases (43: 1170-1175, 2006), 174 participants traveling between 2001 and 2004 wererandomized to receive eitheracidophilus or placebo twicedaily, beginning one daybefore their departure and ending the third day after theirreturn (half of the participants traveled to West Africa; backpacking was the most common mode of travel). On each day during their trip andthe days following their return, participants recorded the number andconsistency of their stools andalso noted their adherence to thetreatment; diarrhea was definedas three or more unformed stoolsin a 24-hour period.
The incidence of diarrhea was higher in the acidolphilus group,with 61.4 cases per100 people/per month, compared to 43.4 cases per 100people/per month in the placebogroup.
Adjustmentfor travel duration andother variables did notreveal any differences betweenthe two groups (adjustedhazard ratios comparing thetwo groupswere 95-percent confidence interval (CI) in an intent-to-treatanalysis and 95-percentCI in anefficacy analysis).
Researchers concluded there was nobeneficial effect from treatmentwith  acidophilus for theprevention of travelers' diarrhea, but more studies are needed to assess the efficacyof other specific probiotics like Lactobacillus rhamnosus .