The effect of probiotics on postsurgical complications in patients with colorectal cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

This article reviews clinical trials assessing the effects of probiotics and synbiotics on pre-, peri-, and post-operative complications following colorectal cancer (CRC) surgery. A systematic search identified 16 studies for qualitative synthesis and 13 for meta-analysis, revealing that probiotic supplementation significantly reduced the incidence of ileus, diarrhea, abdominal collection, sepsis, pneumonia, and surgical site infections. Subgroup analysis suggested that lower probiotic doses (<10^9 colony-forming units), longer supplementation duration (>14 days), and administration starting ≤5 days before and continuing >10 days after surgery were more effective in reducing surgical site infections. The review concludes that probiotics and synbiotics show promise in preventing postoperative complications after CRC surgery, but calls for larger, high-quality randomized controlled trials to determine optimal treatment protocols.