Effect of probiotic supplementation on atopic dermatitis in adults: an umbrella meta-analysis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a long-term inflammatory skin illness that affects between 3 and 5% of adults around the world. It often happens at the same time as other atopic conditions such asthma and allergic rhinitis. The immune system doesn’t work right, and the gut and skin microbiomes change, which is what causes AD. Probiotics have been shown to change immune responses and improve the makeup of gut microbiota, but it is still not apparent how well they work to treat adult AD. This study used a meta-analysis to look at the effects of adding probiotics to AD outcomes in a systematic way. PubMed/MEDLINE, SCOPUS and Web of Science databases and Google Scholar were systematically searched up to November 2024. Present umbrella meta-analysis included five meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials with 1,511 adult participants in total. A random-effect model was employed to pool extracted data. AMSTAR2 questionnaire was used to assess the quality of included studies Probiotic supplementation significantly reduced AD risk (ES = -6.61; 95% CI: -7.76, -5.46; P = 0.000). A moderate statistical heterogeneity was noted (I² = 29.9%). This umbrella meta-analysis suggests that taking probiotics may help adults with atopic dermatitis. While the studies present valuable insights, the variability in their methodological rigor and outcome measures suggests that the findings should be interpreted cautiously. Further rigorously designed trials are necessary to validate and reinforce these results.