Probiotics Cut Atopic Eczema in Infants by Half.

Probiotic treatment administered to mothers prenatally and to their infants for 6 months postnatally reduced later development of atopic disease by 50%, according to a Finnish trial that followed 132 subjects for more than 2 years.

The trial's results are consistent with the "hygiene hypothesis" that says the marked increase in atopic diseases in developed countries can be attributed to reduced microbial exposure in early life, reported Dr. Marko Kalliomaki and colleagues from the University of Turku (Finland).

The results may also indicate that natural gut microflora may be more important than sporadic infections for developing the immune system, Dr. Kalliomaki said (Lancet 357[9262]: 1076-79, 2001).

The study recruited 159 pregnant women from prenatal clinics in Turku, Finland. To be included, all study subjects had to have a family history of atopic disease, specifically atopic eczema, allergic rhinitis, or asthma. The women then received either placebo capsules or 1 x [10.sup.10] colony-forming units of Lactobacillus daily for 2-4 weeks before their expected due date.

After delivery the capsules were taken either by breast-feeding mothers or by the infants themselves for 6 months. The infants were followed for 2 years and assessed in a blinded fashion for signs of atopic disease and IgE status.

The primary end point was atopic eczema. Twenty-seven subjects were dropped from the study for failing to show up for one of the scheduled appointments, leaving 68 patients in the placebo group and 64 in the treatment group.

At 2 years, 23% of the treatment group had atopic eczema, compared with 46% of the placebo group. Moreover, fewer of the treated children had high total IgE concentration (defined as greater than 93.3 kU/L) than placebo-group children, 18% compared with 27%. ...