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Dutch trial of probiotics in acute pancreatitis is to be investigated after deaths

BMJ 2008; 336 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.39482.327350.C2 (Published 07 February 2008) Cite this as: BMJ 2008;336:296
  1. Tony Sheldon
  1. 1Utrecht

    A Dutch trial of probiotics in acute pancreatitis that resulted in 15 unexpected deaths is being investigated by the Dutch Healthcare Inspectorate and the Central Committee on Research involving Human Subjects.

    The multicentre, double blind, randomised controlled trial was designed to see whether probiotics could reduce the incidence of infectious complications in patients with severe acute pancreatitis. Previous small scale studies had indicated that probiotic treatment might be effective (British Journal of Surgery 2002;89:1103-7).

    The Dutch trial involved nearly 300 patients in 15 hospitals, …

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