Pediatr Allergy Respir Dis.  2007 Mar;17(1):27-37.

The Effects on Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis with Oral Lactobacillus casei Supplements in Korean Children

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Soonchunhyang University, Seoul, Korea. bypyun@hosp.sch.ac.kr

Abstract

PURPOSE: Recent studies suggest that oral probiotic administration might be useful in the management of atopic dermatitis. Probiotics are known to promote the maturation of gut- associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) and control inflammatory responses. The purpose of this study was to evaluate clinical and anti-inflammatory effects on children's atopic dermatitis with Lactobacillus casei (L. casei), a kind of probiotic, supplementations.
METHODS
Forty four patients with atopic dermatitis who visited the Pediatric Allergy Clinic in Soonchunhyang University Hospital from December 2004 to April 2005 were enrolled. We evaluated the SCORAD scores. Then, fresh stools were collected and cultured to count colony numbers of L. casei, and blood were samples were taken to measure IFN-gamma, total IgE, specific IgE (house dust mites, milk, egg white, dog hair, soy bean), peripheral blood eosinophil percent, and ECP. We divided patients by two groups randomly. L. casei containing yoghurt was ingested by one group but not by the other group for 16 weeks. After that period, SCORAD scores, stool cultures and blood samples were reevaluated.
RESULTS
Most patients who received L. casei experienced improvement of atopic dermatitis, but changes in SCORAD scores were not so significant compared with the other group. Just forty patients had their blood tested again (L. casei group was 21), and there were no statistical significances. There were also no significant changes of specific IgE, eosinophil percent, ECP, total IgE, and IFN-gamma levels, before and after. The colony counts of L. casei in stool which were cultured after investigation, were relatively high in the group with L. casei supplements. (P=0.03)
Conclusion
The administration of L. casei in children with atopic dermatitis might be helpful to improve the colony counts of L. casei in intestines, and these increased L. casei are expected to act as a down-regulator of allergic inflammation, but more investigations should be conducted to reveal the precise mechanisms and possible complications.

Keyword

Atopic dermatitis; Probiotics; Lactobacillus casei

MeSH Terms

Animals
Child*
Dermatitis, Atopic*
Dogs
Dust
Egg White
Eosinophils
Hair
Hematologic Tests
Humans
Hypersensitivity
Immunoglobulin E
Inflammation
Intestines
Lactobacillus casei*
Lactobacillus*
Lymphoid Tissue
Milk
Mites
Probiotics
Yogurt
Dust
Immunoglobulin E
Full Text Links
  • PARD
Actions
Cited
CITED
export Copy
Close
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
Similar articles
Copyright © 2024 by Korean Association of Medical Journal Editors. All rights reserved.     E-mail: koreamed@kamje.or.kr