Nasrin Moazzen2, Ali
Khalshour6, Zahra Abbasi Shaye6,
Sadegh Ebrahimi4, Hamidreza
Kianifar2
- Child Health Research Centre, University of Queensland, South
Brisbane, Australia
- Allergy Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of
Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Institute for Interventional Allergology and Immunology ,
Cologne/Bonn, Germany
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad
University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Lung Disease Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University
of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of
Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
Correspondence to:
Hamidreza Reyhani, MD. Department of Emergency Medicine, Imamreza
Hospital, Bahar Avenue, Mashhad, Iran Reihanihr@mums.ac.ir
Abstract :
Introduction: COVID-19 pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus
SARS-CoV-2 increasingly involves people worldwide. Probiotics can
improve immune system functions via different mechanisms. We proposed
that Synbiotic Lactocare® may also reduce SARS-Cov2 infection in high
risk medical staff working in COVID-19 hospital wards.
Method: In a randomized, controlled trial, 60 hospital staff
without any history of clinical or laboratory evidence of SARS-Cov2
infection were received either once daily oral synbiotic capsule
(Lactocare®) that contains 1 billion CFU/Cap of L. (Lactobacillus)
casei, L. rhamnosus, Streptococcus thermophilus, Bifidobacterium breve,
L. acidophilus, Bifidobacterium infantis, L. bulgaricus, and
Fructooligosacharide (Zist Takhmir, Tehran, Iran) or placebo with the
same appearance for 30 days. They were followed for two months.
Result: During the two month period of this study, SARS-COV-2
RT-PCR test results were positive in three participants (9.67%) in
placebo group compared to zero positive test in synbiotic group. The
differences were not statistically significant (p= 0.238). During the
study, two persons (7 %) of placebo group had respiratory complaint
such as cough, rhinorrhea and/or dyspnea, compared with one in synbiotic
group (p= 0.492).
Conclusion: This study showed that overall frequency of
SARS-COC2 infection in participants receiving synbiotic and those
receiving placebo did not differ significantly. However, 3 hospital
staff in placebo group compared to no one in synbiotic group had
SARS-COV2 infection. Further studies with greater power and alternative
probiotic strains and mixture are warranted to determine whether
Synbiotic can prevent COVID-19 in at-risk hospital staff.
Keywords: COVID-19, synbiotic, prevention, Lactocare, SARS-Cov2