Probiotics vs placebo or control: Gingival index (GI)
Probiotics probably make little to no difference to the gingival index versus control (MD 0.04, 95%CI -0.18 to 0.27; low certainty).
What each review found
Current versions only| Finding | Effect | Studies | GRADE certainty |
|---|---|---|---|
Probiotics (any strain, dose, or presentation), minimum intake duration 0.2 months vs No treatment or placebo (control) Gingival index · Children and/or adolescents (<18 years) without background systemic disease · follow-up: mean 3.07 months, Healthy children and/or adolescents (<18 years) without systemic disease; RCTs from multiple countries (India, Thailand, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Poland, Colombia, Saudi Arabia); mostly school/community and clinic settings, Overall (all presentations pooled) Probiotics probably make little to no difference to the gingival index versus control (MD 0.04, 95%CI -0.18 to 0.27; low certainty). Efficacy of Probiotic Consumption on Oral Outcomes in Children and/or Adolescents: A Meta-Analysis. (2024) All outcomes | MD 0.04 [-0.18, 0.27] | 3 studies · 144 participants | Low |
Findings are shown side by side, never pooled across reviews.
The reviews
| Review | Searched up to | Included studies | AMSTAR 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Efficacy of Probiotic Consumption on Oral Outcomes in Children and/or Adolescents: A Meta-Analysis. 2024 All outcomes | March 15, 2023 | 19 | Critically Low / Critically Low |
Studies behind the findings
None of these reviews ties its included studies to this outcome in the data here. Cochrane reviews and reviews with headline outcomes only do not list their studies yet.
How reviews are matched to this question
Reviews word the same question differently. Four decision models (TypeSafe's Jev, Liquid AI's d1-ultra, SubQ Snap and Baseten's Elephant) judged each wording of the population, intervention, comparator and outcome against the others; two wordings count as the same when at least three of them agree and none clearly disagrees, and findings count as this question only when all four elements match. Timing, setting and subgroup never split a question: they are shown on each finding.