La supplementazione con probiotici nella prevenzione della malattia influenzale in et\ue0 pediatrica: basi sperimentali ed applicazioni cliniche

In the last ten years, several studies have been performed to evaluate the effects of various probiotics - both alone and in combination - on immune parameters and infectious/inflammatory conditions in humans. The results of these trials suggest that probiotic bacteria might improve both the humoral and cell-mediated immune response, including phagocytosis, lymphocyte proliferation, cytokine release and mucosal IgA production. The most studied probiotics are Lactobacillus spp. and Bifidobacterium spp. They have been seen to provide numerous benefits when administered to children and adults, ranging from a lower risk of viral respiratory infections to improvement in some allergic and inflammatory diseases, particularly atopic dermatitis and bowel inflammatory disease (BID). In this paper we critically evaluate the current state of research on the use of probiotics in the prevention of winter respiratory infections, paying particular attention to the more recent and less emphasized research on children