Patient Cases
To illustrate the potential for treating patients with Lactéol® in real - world conditions, a number of hypothetical cases featuring different clinical profiles are described here.
Acute diarrhoea in an adult
Clinical history
A 34-year-old male who works in the catering industry presented to the clinic complaining of diarrhoea for the previous two days. He was otherwise unwell but anxious about having to take time off work due to diarrhoea.
Clinical examination
He appeared to be mildly dehydrated, reporting thirst and tiredness.
Recent onset infectious diarrhoea was suspected.
Rehydration, diet and recommended treatment
The patient was advised to drink plenty of liquids and he was advised to eat carbohydrates, particularly bananas, and to adopt a watchful waiting approach.
Lactéol® 340 mg capsules were prescribed as an adjunct therapy.
Why choose Lactéol® ?
Lactéol® is efficacious as an adjunct to rehydration therapy for acute diarrhoea in adults and has a good safety profile.1,2
Lactéol® is available as convenient twice-daily capsules, with flexible twice-daily dosing allowing for up-titration of the initial dose if needed.2
Lactéol® capsules are easy to store and transport as they do not require refrigeration or any other special storage considerations.2
Child with suspected rotavirus infection
Clinical history
A 4-year-old boy was brought into the clinic by his parents for diarrhoea.
The whole family had mostly eaten the same meals, but only the boy had diarrhoea. The child had attended a children’s birthday party the day before the diarrhoea started. He had passed 5 liquid stools the previous day.
Clinical examination
He appeared to be mildly dehydrated, with lethargy and irritability.
Recent onset infectious diarrhoea was suspected.
Rehydration, diet and recommended treatment
In order to rehydrate the patient, a standard oral rehydration solution was prescribed.
Lactéol® 340 mg sachets were prescribed as an adjunct therapy.
Why choose Lactéol®?
Lactéol® has established efficacy in reducing the frequency and consistency of stool in children with rotavirus – associated diarrhoea.3
Lactéol® has a good safety profile and can be given to the very young.
Lactéol®, in sachet form, is suitable for infants and children owing to its easy – to – take dosage form. In addition, it tastes good: the orange – banana flavours are well adapted to children’s tastes.4
Adult taking antibiotics
Clinical history
A 27-year-old woman reported frequent and regular diarrhoea, with watery stool at least twice a day. The diarrhoea had started over the past week.
She had been taking oral tetracycline and using topical retinoids for severe acne for several weeks, which had improved dramatically. Owing to this improvement, she did not want to discontinue the acne treatment.
Clinical examination
Physical examination was normal, she showed no signs of dehydration or malnutrition. She had no reported food allergies, nor had her diet changed recently. Antibiotic-associated diarrhoea was suspected.
Taking antibiotics has a significant effect on the gut microbiome as antibiotics indiscriminately kill many species, profoundly altering the composition of the microbiota. The nature and magnitude of the effect depends on the type of antibiotics used. A disturbed microbiota is known to be a causal factor in diarrhoea.5
Rehydration, diet and recommended treatment
She was advised to drink plenty of liquids and to favour a bland, starchy diet to try and thicken her stool. Lactéol® 340 mg capsules were recommended.
Why choose Lactéol®?
Lactéol® was recommended to help normalise her intestinal microbiota.6,7
Lactéol® has been proven to be effective with a good safety profile in antibiotic – associated diarrhoea.8 As Lactéol® does not contain live bacteria there is not a potential for loss of efficacy owing to the concomitant use of antibiotic therapy.9
Lactéol® has the convenience of not requiring any special storage or transport requirements as it does not need to refrigerated.10
Lactéol® is available in an easy-to-take twice daily dosing regimen that can be tailored to the patient’s needs depending upon the severity of the diarrhoea.2
Adult with possible irritable bowel syndrome
Clinical history
A 32-year old woman presented for a general follow ‑ up appointment and complained in passing about a change to her stool regularity.
She complained of having two or three bowel movements per day, with the stool being ‘unusually mushy’ for several weeks. She mentioned that recently she had also been having bouts of intermittent constipation. Saying ‘either I can’t go or I have to go all the time’. The patient occasionally had abdominal pain and said that her diet didn’t seem to affect her bowel movements.
Clinical examination
The patient had no other relevant signs and did not appear dehydrated.
Rehydration, diet and recommended treatment
Irritable bowel syndrome was suspected and she was referred to a gastroenterologist for a full work-up.
In the interim she was prescribed Lactéol® 340 mg capsules.
Why choose Lactéol®?
A possible dysbiosis and/or irritable bowel syndrome were suspected.
Lactéol® has been shown to be effective with a good safety profile in cases of irritable bowel syndrome.11,12
In order to rebalance her intestinal microbiota and to reduce the frequency of her stool, Lactéol® 340 mg capsules were recommended.2
Lactéol® was considered an appropriate choice because of its good safety profile.
Lactéol® has the convenience advantage of not requiring special storage or transport requirements as it does not need to be refrigerated.4
- Salgado AJ, Garcia Jara JA. Treatment with Lactéol® Fort of adults suffering from acute diarrhea in Mexico. Rev Hosp Mujer 1993;2:61-3.
- Lactéol® 340 mg capsules. Summary of Product Characteristics. Houdan, France: Adare Pharmaceuticals; 2017.
- Simakachorn N, Pichaipat V, Rithipornpaisarn P, Kongkaew C, Tongpradit P, Varavithya W. Clinical evaluation of the addition of lyophilized, heat-killed Lactobacillus acidophilus LB to oral rehydration therapy in the treatment of acute diarrhea in children. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr 2000;30:68-72.
- Lactéol® 340 mg sachets. Summary of Product Characteristics. Houdan, France: Adare Pharmaceuticals; 2017.
- Weiss GA, Hennet T. Mechanisms and consequences of intestinal dysbiosis. Cell Mol Life Sci 2017;74:2959-77.
- Lactéol® Forte Package Insert (South Africa). Aptalis Pharma Canada; 2006.
- Liévin-Le Moal V. A gastrointestinal anti-infectious biotherapeutic agent: the heat-treated Lactobacillus LB. Therap Adv Gastroenterol 2016;9:57-75.
- Yap Soo Kor JA, Gwee Kok A, Chen ZA, Tai Bee Choo A, Wong Mee L. Lacteol® Fort treatment reduces antibiotic associated diarrhea. Singapore Fam Physician 2010;34:46-9.
- Warda AK, Rea K, Fitzgerald P, et al. Heat-killed Lactobacilli alter both microbiota composition and behaviour. Behav Brain Res 2019;362:213-23.
- Lactéol® 170 mg capsules. Summary of Product Characteristics. Houdan, France: Adare Pharmaceuticals; 2017.
- Halpern GM, Prindiville T, Blankenburg M, Hsia T, Gershwin ME. Treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with Lacteol® Fort: a randomized, double-blind, cross-over trial. Am J Gastroenterol 1996;91:1579-85.
- Tarrerias AL, Costil V, Vicari F, eet al. The effect of inactivated Lactobacillus LB fermented culture medium on symptom severity: observational investigation in 297 patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome. Dig Dis 2011;29:588-91;
- The treatment of diarroea. A manual for physicians and other senior health workers. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2005.
- Farthing M, Salam MA, Lindberg G, et al. Acute diarrhea in adults and children: a global perspective. J Clin Gastroenterol 2013;47:12-20.
- Guarino A, Ashkenazi S, Gendrel D, Lo Vecchio A, Shamir R, Szajewska H. European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition/European Society for Pediatric Infectious Diseases evidence-based guidelines for the management of acute gastroenteritis in children in Europe: update 2014. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr 2014;59:132-52.
- Riddle MS, DuPont HL, Connor BA. ACG clinical guideline: diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of acute diarrheal infections in adults. Am J Gastroenterol 2016;111:602-22.
INFORMATION & RESOURCES
A diverse range of educational and relevant information concerning Lactéol® heat – treated micro - organisms, postbiotics, the microbiota and the consequences of dysbiosis are available here …
