MIAMI — Probiotics are considered safe and are being recommended for hospitalized patients receiving antibiotics, but physicians continue to be skeptical about the benefits, according to results of a physician survey.
Dr. Robert Martindale presented the findings from a survey of physicians from six different hospitals affiliated with Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), Portland. There was a 62% response rate (924 physicians). Responses were compared for faculty (surgery and primary care physicians) as well as residents regarding the utility of probiotics in routine clinical medicine, personal use of probiotics, and risks and benefits.
The findings indicate many doctors remain skeptical about a role for probiotics in medicine, citing a need for more data, said Dr. Martindale, medical director of the Hospital Nutrition Service at OHSU.
Younger physicians are more positive about the perceived benefits of probiotics, he said. About half (54%) of the 393 faculty physicians and 71% of 531 residents said that probiotics are useful in routine clinical practice. Further, 67% of primary care faculty and 44% of surgery faculty considered probiotics useful in routine practice, said Dr. Martindale, who is also a gastrointestinal surgeon at OSHU. Personal use of probiotics or probiotic yogurt was reported by 31% of faculty and 42% of residents.
Most respondents—76% of faculty and 83% of residents—said they think the benefits of probiotics outweigh the risks. Further, no respondent reported a complication in any patient taking probiotics, Dr. Martindale said.
And while 22% of surgery faculty and 81% of primary care faculty said they understand probiotics' basic mechanisms of action, 71% of the surgery faculty indicated they have suggested or prescribed probiotics to their patients.
“I'm a general surgeon, a trauma surgeon. What am I doing here talking about probiotics? I'm on the firing line, out there in the ICUs with all the diarrhea,” Dr. Martindale remarked.
At OHSU, the probiotic protocol for critical care patients is 1 teaspoon or 5-10 cc of probiotic yogurt mixed in 30-60 cc water, then infused into a feeding tube, he reported. “It is probably the least expensive thing we do all day in the ICU.”
Disclosures: Dr. Martindale said he had no relevant financial disclosures.