Study finds personalized antibiotics, prebiotics, and probiotics combo may help treat IBS

IBS is a chronic condition that affects a person’s digestive system. Symptoms include recurrent pain and changes to bowel habits.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common gastrointestinal disorder characterized by symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, gas, diarrhea, and constipation. It is a chronic condition that affects the large intestine and can significantly impact a person's quality of life. While the exact cause of IBS is not fully understood, it is believed to involve a combination of factors including abnormal gastrointestinal motility, increased sensitivity to certain foods, stress, and alterations in the gut microbiota.

In the study, researchers recruited 13 participants and prescribed a specific regime of one of two antibiotics to treat pathogenic bacteria that existed at levels that were too high, as well as probiotics to replace beneficial strains that were at levels that were too low. Prebiotics including inulin and psyllium were prescribed to over two-thirds of participants.

After 12 weeks of treatment initiation, 12 out of 13 participants showed symptom improvement. Initially reported symptoms included abdominal pain, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, weight loss, and dyspepsia. Following treatment, the predominant symptoms were abdominal pain, bloating, and diarrhea. Additionally, five participants achieved complete symptom remission.

“As there is significant variation between even healthy individuals’ microbiome, it was unclear whether the dysbiosis — the imbalance between different bacterial strains in the gut — that occurs in people with post-infectious IBS had caused the symptoms they experienced. People should have their microbiomes sequenced when they are healthy for research in this area to advance, and causal factors to be identified. If we can get to that stage, I think we will truly practice personalized medicine, and we can get much better in targeting treatments with some of these antibiotics, probiotics, or prebiotics,” explained Satish Rao, gastroenterologist and professor of medicine at the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University.

Reference: European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases conference: Barcelona, Spain- 27-30 April; Can a personalized antibiotics, prebiotics, and probiotics combo help treat IBS?