Medically reviewed by Onikepe Adegbola, MD, PhD
A recent real-world study by French doctors has upheld the efficacy of Bifidobacterium longum 35624 – a probiotic formulation – in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which was observed earlier in controlled clinical trials. This study “Effect of Bifidobacterium longum 35624 on disease severity and quality of life in patients with irritable bowel syndrome” was published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology.
Two-thirds of the participants in this study evaluated Bifidobacterium longum 35624 to be effective. This research involved 233 patients, with 48% having moderate disease and 46% having severe disease. Bifidobacterium longum 35624 was given to the patients for 30 days.
In this study, 57% of patients who received 30-day probiotic medication with Bifidobacterium longum 35624 reported a lower severity category or remission after treatment. Furthermore, the patients’ quality of life increased dramatically after treatment. Overall, 63.8% of patients were satisfied with Bifidobacterium longum 35624 probiotic medication.
Why is this study important?
This study is important because it studied the efficacy of Bifidobacterium longum 35624 in patients with moderate or severe IBS. Together these patients constituted more than 94% of the study participants. Severity reduction – which was shown in this study in patients with severe and moderate IBS – can be considered a strong measure of the effectiveness of this therapy.
Moreover, a reduction in IBS severity in two-thirds of the participants in this study is in line with a similar prevalence of dysbiosis in IBS, thus indicating a strong scientific mechanism of this therapy in IBS.
Also, this study used the most recent ROME IV criteria to diagnose IBS, whereas the older studies used the older diagnostic criteria. Further, this nationwide study involved 61 practicing gastroenterologists with an upper limit of 12 participants per gastroenterologist to minimize the bias in study results.
It is worth noting that patients with various forms of IBS were satisfactorily represented in the study (IBS-C: 71 patients, IBS-D: 89 patients; IBS-M: 61 patients, and IBS-U: 12 patients). Importantly, this study found that a 30-day treatment with Bifidobacterium longum 35624 was effective in all subtypes of IBS.
Also, this study upheld the good tolerability of Bifidobacterium longum 35624, initially noted in controlled clinical trials. The side effects were generally minor and were noted in only approximately 5% of the participants.
What Does This Study Mean For IBS Patients?
Patients with moderate or severe IBS, regardless of the IBS type, and particularly those with evidence of dysbiosis, can benefit from 30-day treatment with Bifidobacterium longum 35624. Patients with IBS can achieve a reduction in their IBS symptoms and may even achieve remission with this therapy.
Toward the goal of achieving symptomatic benefits, patients with IBS may discuss this treatment option of probiotics, such as Bifidobacterium longum 35624, with their health care practitioners.
Reference:
Sabaté, J. M., & Iglicki, F. (2022). Effect of Bifidobacterium longum 35624 on disease severity and quality of life in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. World journal of gastroenterology, 28(7), 732–744. https://doi.org/10.3748/wjg.v28.i7.732
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