Randomized clinical trial: The effect of fermented milk with the probiotic cultures Lactobacillus acidophilus La-5® and Bifidobacterium BB-12® and Beneo dietary fibres on health-related quality of life and the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome in adult

• Patients consuming synbiotic/placebo reported 18% improvement in IBS-QoL score.
• Patients consuming synbiotic/placebo reported improvements in several IBS symptoms.
• No beneficial effect of synbiotic product over placebo was shown in IBS patients.
• High placebo effect was observed in this study.

Clinical trials evaluating the effects of synbiotics on irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are lacking. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of a synbiotic fermented milk on health-related quality of life (QoL) and IBS symptoms in patients with constipation-predominant IBS. Altogether, 76 patients (test = 33, control = 43) were randomized in this multicentre, double-blind, randomized and placebo-controlled trial. On average, an 18% improvement in total IBS-QoL score was reported and significant improvements in bloating severity, satisfaction with bowel movements and the severity of IBS symptoms' interference with patients' everyday life were observed; however, there were no statistically significant differences between the synbiotic group and the placebo group. Sustained improvements in several IBS symptoms and total IBS-QoL score observed in both groups could suggest there may be derivable benefits from the regular consumption of fermented milk; however, this would need to be confirmed in a separate clinical trial.