CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 101Gestational Diabetes Research and ManagementProbiotics and Fermented FoodsGut microbiota and health

Probiotics for preventing gestational diabetes

Open access
Barrett, Helen L, Dekker Nitert, Marloes, Conwell, Louise S, Callaway, Leonie K·2014·Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
DOI 10.1002/14651858.cd009951.pub2PMC PMC6885033
Open this paper in CoChat — free account

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is associated with a range of adverse pregnancy outcomes for mother and infant. The prevention of GDM using lifestyle interventions has proven difficult. The gut microbiome (the composite of bacteria present in the intestines) influences host inflammatory pathways, glucose and lipid metabolism and, in other settings, alteration of the gut microbiome has been shown to impact on these host responses. Probiotics are one way of altering the gut microbiome but little is known about their use in influencing the metabolic environment of pregnancy. OBJECTIVES: To assess the effects of probiotic supplementation when compared with other methods for the prevention of GDM. SEARCH METHODS: We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and childbirth Group's Trials Register (31 August 2013) and reference lists of the articles of retrieved studies. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised and cluster-randomised trials comparing the use of probiotic supplementation with other methods for the prevention of the development of GDM. Cluster-randomised trials were eligible for inclusion but none were identified. Quasi-randomised and cross-over design studies are not eligible for inclusion in this review. Studies presented only as abstracts with no subsequent full report of study results would also have been excluded. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two review authors independently assessed study eligibility, extracted data and assessed risk of bias of included study. Data were checked for accuracy. MAIN RESULTS: Eleven reports (relating to five possible trials) were found. We included one study (six trial reports) involving 256 women. Four other studies are ongoing.The included trial consisted of three treatment arms: probiotic with dietary intervention, placebo and dietary intervention, and dietary intervention alone; it was at a low risk of bias. The study reported primary outcomes of a reduction in the rate of gestational diabetes mellitus (risk ratio (RR) 0.38, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.20 to 0.70), with no statistical difference in the rates of miscarriage/intrauterine fetal death (IUFD)/stillbirth/neonatal death (RR 2.00, 95% CI 0.35 to 11.35). Secondary outcomes reported were a reduction in infant birthweight (mean difference (MD) -127.71 g, 95% CI -251.37 to -4.06) in the probiotic group and no clear evidence of increased risk of preterm delivery (RR 3.27, 95% CI 0.44 to 24.43), or caesarean section rate (RR 1.23, 95% CI 0.65 to 2.32). The primary infant outcomes of rates of macrosomia and large-for-gestational age infants were not reported. The following secondary outcomes were not reported: maternal gestational weight gain, pre-eclampsia, and the long-term diagnosis of diabetes mellitus; infant body composition, shoulder dystocia, admission to neonatal intensive care, jaundice, hypoglycaemia and long-term rates of obesity and diabetes mellitus. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: One trial has shown a reduction in the rate of GDM when women are randomised to probiotics early in pregnancy but more uncertain evidence of any effect on miscarriage/IUFD/stillbirth/neonatal death. There are no data on macrosomia. At this time, there are insufficient studies to perform a quantitative meta-analysis. Further results are awaited from four ongoing studies.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1002/14651858.cd009951.pub2

Cites

80 of 80 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

2 retracted

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. ACOG Committee. ACOG Committee Opinion number 315, September 2005. Obesity in pregnancy. Obstetrics & Gynecology 2005;106(3):671‐5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. The Nordic Cochrane Centre, The Cochrane Collaboration. Review Manager (RevMan). Version 5.2. Copenhagen: The Nordic Cochrane Centre, The Cochrane Collaboration, 2011.
  3. WHO. Obesity: Preventing and Managing the Global Epidemic. WHO Technical Report series 894. Geneva: WHO, 2000. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Related

Authors
Barrett, H. L., Dekker Nitert, M., Conwell, L. S., & Callaway, L. K.
Affiliations
  • The University of Queensland (AU)
  • The University of Queensland; School of Medicine; Herston Australia 4029
ORCID
Venue
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2014-02-27
Volume
4
Issue
2
Pages
CD009951-CD009951
ISSN
  • 1361-6137 (ISSN-L)
  • 1465-1858
DOI
10.1002/14651858.cd009951.pub2
PMC
PMC6885033
OpenAlex
W2159921493
Cited by
101
References
79
Citations by year
2025: 2 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 14 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 1
FWCI
1.07
Type
journal article
Language
en
Update notices
new_version (2021-04-19)
Open access
Locations
  • Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Obstetrics and Gynecology › Gestational Diabetes Research and Management
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Probiotics and Fermented Foods
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Gut microbiota and health
Keywords
probiotics, gestational diabetes mellitus, gestational diabetes prevention, gut microbiota, dietary intervention, birth weight, preterm birth, cesarean section, miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death, pregnancy outcomes, risk of bias assessment, meta-analysis of trials, risk of bias
MeSH terms
Female, Humans, Pregnancy, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Diabetes, Gestational, Probiotics

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review