Introduction: Many psychiatric illnesses have been linked to
the gut microbiome, with supplements such as probiotics showing some efficacy
in alleviating the symptoms of some psychiatric illnesses. There is a
well-established, bidirectional connection between the gut microbiome and the
brain, known as the gut-brain-axis. Research suggests that the gut-brain-axis
may influence a variety of neurological functions, including the pathology of
psychiatric disorders. The aim of this chapter is to evaluate the current
literature investigating the effects of adjuvant probiotic or synbiotic
administration in combination with first-line treatments for psychiatric
illnesses.
Methods: This review was carried out according to the
Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA)
guidelines. A systematic search of four databases was conducted using key terms
related to treatments for psychiatric illnesses, the gut microbiome, and
probiotics.
All results were then evaluated based on specific eligibility
criteria.
Results: Ten studies met eligibility criteria and were
analysed for reported changes in outcome measures used to assess the symptoms
of psychiatric illness and the tolerability of treatment. All Major Depressive
Disorder (MDD) (n=7) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) (n=1) studies found
adjuvant probiotic or synbiotic treatment to be more efficacious in improving
the symptoms of psychiatric illness than the first-line treatment alone or with
placebo. The schizophrenia studies (n=2) found adjuvant probiotic treatment to
have no significant difference in clinical outcomes, but it was found to
improve the tolerability of first-line antipsychotics.
Discussion and Conclusion: The findings of the studies
included in this chapter suggest the use of adjuvant probiotic treatment with
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for MDD and GAD to be superior
to SSRI treatment alone. Probiotic adjuvant treatment with antipsychotics could
be beneficial for improving the tolerability of the antipsychotics, but these
findings do not suggest that adjuvant probiotic treatment would result in
improved clinical outcomes for symptoms of schizophrenia. Finally, it is said
that the gut microbiome and the brain are clearly linked, and reviewed studies show
that combining treatments that target both areas respectively is a viable and
efficacious way to combat the symptoms and treat psychiatric illnesses.
Author(s) Details
E. Forth
Department of Psychiatry, Providence Care Hospital,
Kingston, ON, Canada, Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen’s University,
Kingston, ON, Canada and Department of Psychiatry, Queen’s University, Kingston
ON, Canada.
B. Buehner
Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen’s University,
Kingston, ON, Canada.
A. Storer
Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen’s University,
Kingston, ON, Canada.
C. Sgarbossa
Department of Psychiatry, Providence Care Hospital,
Kingston, ON, Canada, Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen’s University,
Kingston, ON, Canada and Department of Psychiatry, Queen’s University, Kingston ON, Canada.
R. Milev
Department of Psychiatry, Providence Care Hospital,
Kingston, ON, Canada, Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen’s University,
Kingston, ON, Canada, Department of Psychiatry, Queen’s University, Kingston
ON, Canada and Department of Psychology, Queen’s University, ON, Canada.
A. Chinna Meyyappan
Department of Psychiatry, Providence Care Hospital,
Kingston, ON, Canada, Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen’s University,
Kingston, ON, Canada and Department of Psychiatry, Queen’s University, Kingston
ON, Canada.
Please see the book here:- https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/mria/v9/1103
