Probiotics for Clostridium difficile infection

Clostridium difficile is the most common cause of hospital-acquired infections. Probiotics provide a promising, well-tolerated adjunct therapy to standard C. difficile infection (CDI) treatment regimens, but there is a paucity of data regarding their effectiveness for the treatment of an initial CDI. We conducted a pilot randomized controlled trial of 33 participants in order to determine the feasibility and health outcomes of adjunct probiotic use in patients with an initial mild to moderate CDI. The intervention was a four-strain oral probiotic capsule containing Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM, L. paracasei Lpc-37, Bifidobacterium lactis Bi-07, and B. lactis Bl-04.