Probiotics for pediatric atopic dermatitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Background: Atopic dermatitis is a prevalent chronic inflammatory skin disease in children and the severity of the disease can be affected by modulation of gut microbiota through probiotics. Nonetheless, the clinical trial outcomes on the effectiveness of probiotics in child atopic dermatitis are inconclusive. Objective: We sought to compare the effects of using probiotics in comparison with placebo in children/adolescents with eczema/atopic dermatitis. Methods: We searched PubMed/MEDLINE, Google Scholar, and Cochrane Library from inception to March 2025. Statistical analyses were done in Review Manager version 5.4.1 (The Nordic Cochrane Centre, Copenhagen, Denmark). Pooling the trials using a fixed effect yielded standard mean difference (SMD) with 95% CI. Results: = 69%). Qualitative analysis showed that probiotics provide better quality of life and improve clinical and anatomical outcomes than placebo. Conclusions: Analysis found that probiotics can improve patient-reported quality of life in the short-term but not clinical results. However, SCORAD varies considerably over time and paucity of long-term follow-up data makes it difficult to determine the long-term clinical value of probiotics.