Investigating the effect of quadruple therapy with Saccharomyces boulardii or Lactobacillus reuteri strain (DSMZ 17648) supplements on eradication of Helicobacter pylori and treatments adverse effects: a double-blind placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial

BACKGROUND: The goal of this study was to investigate the effects of treatment with Saccharomyces boulardii and Lactobacillus reuteri on the eradication of Helicobacter pylori and Adverse effects (AEs) of the treatment. RESULTS: This study was a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. And, eradication of H. pylori was reported comparing quadruple therapy include of PPI (proton pomp inhibitor), bismuth subcitrate, clarithromycin, and amoxicillin versus quadruple therapy supplemented with S. boulardii and L. reuteri DSMZ 17648. For this aim, a total of 156 patients were included in the current study; and patients positive for H. pylori infection (n = 156) were randomly assigned to 3 groups: 52 patients (Group P) received conventional quadruple therapy plus L. reuteri, 52 patients (Group S) received conventional quadruple therapy plus S. boulardii daily, for 2 weeks, and 52 patients were in the control group (Group C). At the end of the treatment period, all the subjects continued to take proton pump inhibitor (PPI) alone for 14 days, and then, no medication was given for 2 weeks again. During follow-up, gastrointestinal symptoms were assessed using an evaluation scale (Glasgow dyspepsia questionnaire [GDQ]), and AEs were assessed at 7, 14, 21, and 28 days. As a result, all patients completed the treatment protocol in all groups by the end of the study. Additionally, eradication therapy was effective for 94.2% of subjects in Group S, 92.3% of subjects in Group P, and 86.5% of subjects in the control group, with no differences between treatment arms. In Group S, the chance of developing symptoms of nausea (OR = 2.74), diarrhea (OR = 3.01), headache (OR = 10.51), abdominal pain (OR = 3.21), and anxiety (OR = 3.58) was significantly lower than in the control group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: S. boulardii could significantly reduce some AEs of H. pylori eradication therapy, but effectiveness of Lactobacillus reuteri on these cases was not significant. It is recommended to conduct the future research with larger sample size in order to investigate the effect. Trial registration: IRCT20200106046021N1, this trial was registered on Jan 14, 2020. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12876-022-02187-z.