Research paper
Clinical efficacy of probiotics in the treatment of alcoholic liver disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Study answer
What this study found
Probiotic supplementation improved liver function and serum albumin in patients with alcoholic liver disease. Compared with control, probiotics significantly reduced ALT (MD = -13.36, 95% CI: -15.80, -10.91; P < 0.00001), AST (MD = -16.99, 95% CI: -20.38, -13.59; P < 0.00001), and GGT (MD = -18.79, 95% CI: -28.23, -9.34; P < 0.0001), and increased albumin (MD = 0.19, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.36; P = 0.03). Bilirubin was not significantly different, inflammatory markers were inconsistent, and no serious adverse events were reported. The authors concluded that probiotics may have a beneficial…
- Study & population
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of 9 controlled studies in adults with alcoholic liver disease, including alcoholic fatty liver disease, alcoholic hepatitis, and alcoholic cirrhosis, conducted in multiple countries.
- Intervention
- Across the included trials, the active intervention was probiotic supplementation using different strains or combinations, including Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus R0011 plus Lactobacillus helveticus R0052, Lactobacillus subtilis/Streptococcus faecium, Lactobacillus casei Shirota YIT 9029, Lactobacillus casei,…
- Key limitation
- The evidence base was small and heterogeneous, with different probiotic strains or combinations, varied ALD subtypes, and short treatment durations of 7 to 60 days.
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Open PDFOriginal abstract
Objective Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is a liver damage disease caused by long-term heavy drinking. Currently, there is no targeted pharmaceutical intervention available for the treatment of this disease. To address this, this paper evaluates the e…