Non-Cochrane · other · PM42343426
Efficacy of probiotics in the management of oral candidiasis: an umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.
Mehta Vini, Galletti Cosimo, Mathur Ankita, et al. · Systematic reviews · 2026 · PubMed · doi:10.1186/s13643-026-03249-z
Findings
13 findings
| Population | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patients with or at risk of oral candidiasis (elderly, denture wearers, children, mixed) | Probiotics (any strain, dose or formulation) | Placebo, no intervention or antifungal/other control | Clinical cure of oral Candida infection Source meta-analysis: Tang R 2025 | OR 7.80 [4.78, 12.75] GRADE not reported Studies not reported |
| Patients with or at risk of oral candidiasis (elderly, denture wearers, children, mixed) | Probiotics (any strain, dose or formulation) | Placebo, no intervention or antifungal/other control | Oral Candida spp. count reduction / colonization Source meta-analysis: Ai R 2017 (elderly) | OR 0.54 [0.38, 0.77] GRADE not reported Studies not reported |
| Patients with or at risk of oral candidiasis (elderly, denture wearers, children, mixed) | Probiotics (any strain, dose or formulation) | Placebo, no intervention or antifungal/other control | Oral Candida spp. count reduction / colonization Source meta-analysis: Hu L 2019 (elderly and denture wearers; human studies only) | OR 0.24 [0.09, 0.63] GRADE not reported Studies not reported |
| Patients with or at risk of oral candidiasis (elderly, denture wearers, children, mixed) | Probiotics (any strain, dose or formulation) | Placebo, no intervention or antifungal/other control | Recurrence of oral candidiasis after cure Source meta-analysis: Tang R 2025 | OR 0.21 [0.12, 0.35] GRADE not reported Studies not reported |
| Patients with or at risk of oral candidiasis (elderly, denture wearers, children, mixed) | Probiotics (any strain, dose or formulation) | Placebo, no intervention or antifungal/other control | Detection rate of oral Candida Source meta-analysis: Tang R 2025 | OR 0.06 [0.01, 0.57] GRADE not reported Studies not reported |
| Patients with or at risk of oral candidiasis (elderly, denture wearers, children, mixed) | Probiotics (any strain, dose or formulation) | Placebo, no intervention or antifungal/other control | Oral Candida spp. count reduction / colonization Source meta-analysis: Li P 2025 | OR 0.38 [0.22, 0.68] GRADE not reported Studies not reported |
| Patients with or at risk of oral candidiasis (elderly, denture wearers, children, mixed) | Probiotics (any strain, dose or formulation) | Placebo, no intervention or antifungal/other control | Oral Candida spp. count reduction / colonization Source meta-analysis: Mundula T 2019 | OR 0.71 [0.37, 1.32] GRADE not reported Studies not reported |
| Adults | Probiotic | Antifungal agents/control/placebo | Reduction in the oral Candida spp. count Umbrella review GRADE of evidence from included systematic reviews | Beneficial/positive Intervention effect Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency, publication bias 30 studies · 3450 participants |
| Adults | Probiotic | Antifungal agents/control/placebo | Recurrence rates post treatment Umbrella review GRADE of evidence from included systematic reviews | Beneficial/positive Intervention effect Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency, publication bias 16 studies · 1129 participants |
| Adults | Probiotic | Antifungal agents/control/placebo | Clinical cure rate of oral candidiasis Umbrella review GRADE of evidence from included systematic reviews | Beneficial/positive Intervention effect Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency, publication bias 21 studies · 1694 participants |
| Children (pediatric population) | Probiotic | Antifungal agents/control/placebo | Recurrence rates post treatment Umbrella review GRADE of evidence from included systematic reviews | no estimate extracted Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency Studies not reported |
| Children (pediatric population) | Probiotic | Antifungal agents/control/placebo | Reduction in the oral Candida spp. count Umbrella review GRADE of evidence from included systematic reviews | no estimate extracted Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency Studies not reported |
| Children (pediatric population) | Probiotic | Antifungal agents/control/placebo | Clinical cure rate of oral candidiasis Umbrella review GRADE of evidence from included systematic reviews | no estimate extracted Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency Studies not reported |
Included primary studies 32
Open in Studies| Study | Year | Also included by | Outcomes it informs here | Trial data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zhang 2023 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | 5 other reviews | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Chen 2013 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | 1 other review | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Ahola 2002 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Ai 2017 A meta -analysis of randomized trials assessing the effects of probiotic preparations on oral candidiasis in the elderly DOI:10.1016/j.archoralbio.2017.04.030 | 2017 | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Burton 2013 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Chhabra 2019 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Elsayes 2024 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Hatakka 2007 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Hu 2019 In vivo effectiveness and safety of probiotics on prophylaxis and treatment of oral candidiasis: a systematic review and meta-analysis DOI:10.1186/s12903-019-0841-2 | 2019 | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Huang 2009 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Ishikawa 2015 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Keller 2018 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Kong 2008 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Kraft-Bodi 2015 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Krittika 2024 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Li 2025 Efficacy of probiotics for oral candidiasis management: a systematic review DOI:10.1186/s12903-025-06468-3 | 2025 | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Liang 2019 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Lopez-Jornet 2018 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Mendonça 2012 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Mishra 2016 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Miyazima 2017 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Mohitmafi 2023 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Mundula 2019 Effect of Probiotics on Oral Candidiasis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PMID:31615039 | 2019 | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Petti 2001 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Rane 2018 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Saha 2025 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Shah 2020 A systematic review of randomized trials on effects of probiotic on oral Candida DOI:10.4103/jiaphd.jiaphd_88_19 | 2020 | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Sutula 2013 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Taipale 2012 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Tang 2025 Evaluating the efficacy of probiotics in the treatment of oral Candida infection: A meta-analysis DOI:10.1159/000547106 | 2025 | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Turska-Szybka 2025 Probiotics, Prebiotics, Synbiotics, and Postbiotics Against Oral Candida in Children: A Review of Clinical Trials. PMID:40732878 | 2025 | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
| Yang 2020 matched by author and year (probable) | NR | this review only | not stated | not extracted yet |
Overlap with other reviews
Reviews that include the same primary studies are not independent evidence. Shared counts match studies by PMID, DOI or NCT, and otherwise by author and year (a probable match). Only the non-Cochrane dental reviews have study lists, so overlap with Cochrane reviews is not counted yet.
Review question
| Element | Planned (methods) | Found (results) |
|---|---|---|
| Population | Patients with or without candidiasis or individuals at risk (denture wearers and immunocompromised patients) | 7 reviews (59 primary studies, 4739 participants): mixed populations (n=4), elderly and denture wearers (n=5), children 3-14 years (n=5), adults (n=2), infants (n=1) |
| Intervention | Any dose, formulation or strain of probiotic | Multi-strain probiotics (Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Streptococcus, Propionibacterium and others) as tablets, capsules, cheese, lozenges, yogurt drinks, mouthwash, ice cream and powders |
| Comparison | No intervention, any intervention, control/placebo | Placebo, blank control, antifungals (nystatin, fluconazole), chlorhexidine, herbal rinses, nutritional products |
| Outcomes | Reduction in oral Candida spp. count (CFU/mL); clinical cure rate; recurrence rate | Oral Candida spp. reduction (5 meta-analyses, OR 0.06 to 0.71); clinical cure and recurrence rate (one meta-analysis, Tang 2025) |
| Study designs | Full-text systematic reviews with or without meta-analysis on human subjects, English language | 2 systematic reviews without meta-analysis and 5 systematic reviews with meta-analysis; 55 RCTs and 4 pre-post intervention studies |
| Timing | Not specified | Intervention duration 3 days to 2 years across reviews; primary studies published 2001 to 2025 |