Meta-analysis of probiotics for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome

Table 2 Examples of excluded randomized, controlled trials of probiotics for IBS

Reference	Probiotic	Number of subjects randomized	Number of subjects analyzed	Dose (cfu/mL)	Duration	Exclusion reason
DiBaise[63]	L. plantarum 299v vs placebo	29	20	6 × 109	4 wk	Withdrawn by author
Saggioro[64]	L. plantarum + L. acidophilus	46	39	1 × 1011	4 wk	Quality score = 2.0
Saggioro[64]	L. plantarum + Bifido. breve	44	37	1 × 1010	4 wk	Quality score = 2.0
Long[65]	Bifido. (species not given)	60	60	6 × 109	2 wk	Quality score = 2.5
Kajander[66]	L. rhamnosus GG + L. rham. LC705 + Bifid. breve Bb99 +Prop. freudenreichii	103	83	8-9 × 109	6 mo	Duplicate study of Kajander K 2005
Bittner[67]	Prescript-assist®, 29 soil strains and prebiotic	24	24	2.6 × 108	Varied	Controls from Bittner 2005 study, phase 4 study
Moon[68]	Bacillus subtilis + St. faecium	34	34	750 mL/d, cfu/d not given	4 wk	Outcome data not provided for each group in abstract

cfu/mL: Colony forming units per milliliter; IBS: Irritable bowel syndrome; L.: Lactobacillus; Bifido.: Bifidobacterium.