Probiotics Intervention in Preventing Conversion of Impaired Glucose Tolerance to Diabetes: The PPDP Follow-On Study

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) after six years in patients with IGT who received early probiotic intervention in the Probiotics Prevention Diabetes Programme (PPDP) trial. Methods: 77 patients with IGT in the PPDP trial were randomized to either probiotic or placebo. After the completion of the trial, 72 patients were invited to participate in the PPDP Follow-On study. The incidence of T2DM in each group was assessed using Kaplan-Meier analysis. Results: The cumulative incidence of T2DM was 60.5% with probiotic treatment versus 54.5% with placebo within 6 years, there was no significant difference in the risk of developing T2DM between the two groups (P=0.674). Conclusions: Supplemental probiotic therapy does not reduce the risk of IGT conversion to T2DM.