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अमूर्त

A New Acid-Resistant Seamless Capsule of Bifidobacterium Improves Chronic Constipation in Patients on Maintenance Hemodialysis

Hideaki Ishikawa, Yoko Morino, Sono Usui, Chisato Shigematsu, Saori Tsukushi and Junichi Sakamoto

Objective: To assess the therapeutic efficacy of a new acid-resistant seamless capsule of Bifidobacterium supplements (Bs) for chronic constipation (Cc) in patients on maintenance hemodialysis (MHD).
Design: This was a prospective interventional study.
Setting: This study was performed in a tertiary care hospital.
Subjects: Sixtheen patients on stable MHD (mean ± standard deviation age, 70.4 ± 10.1; mean ± SD duration of dialysis, 10.2 ± 7.4 years) were enrolled. Patients with physical frailty or cognitive decline were excluded.
Intervention: Bs was added to the diet once daily for three months to assess whether it could achieve a beneficial effect on bowel habits in patients on MHD.
Main outcome measure: We used the constipation scoring system (css) and Bristol stool form scale (Bss) for objective assessment of Cc. In this system, the constipation score (cs) ranges from 0 to 30, with 30 being the worst. Bs ranges from 1 to 7, 1 being interpreted as a hard stool and 7 being classified as a liquid one: diarrhea. Results were obtained by patient questionnaire, and scores were calculated monthly.
Results: Compared with baseline, the mean cs improved significantly after the first month (from 10.7 ± 5.9 to 5.0 ± 4.0; p<0.001 by one-way analysis of variance with repeated measures). We also confirmed that the mean Bss changed significantly (from 3.4 ± 1.5 to 3.8 ± 1.0; p<0.02) after second month.
Conclusion: The results of our study suggest that this new type of Bs may have merit for improving Cc in patients on stable MHD without any adverse effects and is well tolerated.