14 WORLD GASTROENTEROLOGY NEWS JANUARY 2015 Editorial | Expert Point of View | Gastro 2015: AGW/WGO | WDHD News | WGO & WGOF News | WGO Global Guidelines | Calendar of Events Associate Professor Brigita Smolović (Faculty of Medicine in Podgorica). Professor Dr. Srdjan Djuranovic (Faculty of Medicine in Belgrade). Probiotics: Probiotics are live microorganisms that contribute to improving health. The mechanism of action of probiotic bacteria includes three main elements. The first element is the impact on the intestinal bacteria and establishing a good balance. The second element is immuno-regulation by regulating levels of cytokines and interleukins (proinflammatory substances that are found not only in the digestive tract, but also in the whole organism). The third element is the increase in mucus production; increased opportunities to have a pro-tective layer of mucous membranes in the digestive tract is very important in all parts of the digestive tract. There are more possible indications for the use of probiotics: acute viral gastroenteritis, antibiotic-associated diarrhea, irritable colon, pouchitis, and traveler’s diarrhea. Antibiotic-associated diarrhea can occur dur-ing, and sometimes more than two months after the administration of antibiotics. Almost all antibiotics influence this phenomenon, especially those that work on anaerobes. The dif-ference in the mode of administration of antibiotics has virtually the same risk; whether used orally or paren-tally. There are two factors that can be considered upon the occurrence of antibiotic-induced diarrhea: a factor of antibiotics and the host. Nine randomized studies found that those who took probiotics have significantly less antibiotic-induced diarrhea compared to those taking a placebo, but a lot of study is needed in order to form a clear recommenda-tion for their use in combination with antibiotics. In the conclusion of the symposium we were told that probiotic prepara-tions will not be able to cure all, but we are sure that some of these indica-tions will be like space in the future, which will of course be the subject of research and thinking. And we really like that probiotics will be the drugs of the 21st century, because micro-biology and antibiotics were major in medicine of the 20th century. The future has already begun!!
ewgn-vol19-issue4-FINAL
To see the actual publication please follow the link above