BioGaia participated at AAP

This years AAP was held in San Diego California and attracted more than 6000 physicians. The scientific program covered everything from sports medicine to obesity, nutrition and bone development. Hillary Clinton visited as a special guest speaker talking about the importance of parents reading to their children.

Some highlights from the congress within the gastroenterology area are presented below.

“Probiotics, Prebiotics and Synbiotics: which biotic is appropriate for children?”
Professor Michael Cabana, San Francisco

During this session Prof Cabana stressed the importance of strain specificity when it comes to probiotics. The importance of thinking about probiotics as with antibiotics, that is choosing a specific and well documented strain for a specific indication. On several occasions he mentioned Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938 (Protectis) as a good example in terms of both CFUs (dose) and strain specificity.

Prof Cabana then presented different indications where probiotics have shown consistent and significant effects.

In treatment of diarrhoea probiotics have shown significant effects in reduction of duration (particularly in rotavirus). The effect however is modest with a reduction of 17-18 hours on average.

Within infantile colic, there is growing evidence on L. reuteri DSM 17938 in both treatment as well as in prevention of colic. Prof Cabana summarised four treatment studies, Savino (2007, 2011), Szajewska (2013) and Sung (2014). The session ended with information about yet another study, an individual patient data metaanalysis that is under progress covering all the data on individual level from the three placebo-controlled treatment studies.

Prof Cabana also referred to the study from Indrio (2014) where L. reuteri DSM 17983 was given preventively for three months to newborns. He thought it was a very brave study to perform, as not all infants will develop colic and hence it is impressive with the positive results.

Handout and further description of this session can be found through the AAP Experience website.

Other sessions of interest were:

”To treat or not to treat? Avoiding the over prescription of medications for Infant GERD”
Professor David A Gremse from University of South Alabama

“The overuse of antireflux medication in neonates”
Anna Maria Hibbs (Division of Neonatology and Perinatal Medicine at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Case Western Reserve University, School of Medicine).

“Vitamin D – bones and beyond: when to screen, whom to treat and how to treat”.
Professor Neville H Golden, MD, Professor in Pediatrics at Stanford University School of Medicine

“Below the curve: Diagnosing malnutrition in your office”.
Mark R Corkins, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, Universisty of Tennessee Health Science Center.

Further information about these sessions can be found through the AAP Conference planner.