Use of Oral Probiotics to Reduce Urinary Oxalate Excretion

Summary

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of two probiotic preparations (Agri-King Synbiotic and Oxadrop) on urinary oxalate excretion in patients with mild hyperoxaluria. Probiotics are live microorganisms thought to be beneficial to the host organism. Hyperoxaluria is a hereditary disorder that causes a special kind of stone to form in the kidney and urine. Oxalates are naturally-occurring substances found in plants, animals, and in humans. Excretion of oxalates in the urine is a risk factor for kidney stone formation.

Our hypothesis was that the mild hyperoxaluria is due to over absorption of oxalate from food and that probiotics will improve gastrointestinal barrier function to decrease oxalate absorption across the gut (and hence its elimination in the urine).

In the study, participants were randomized to placebo, Agri-King Synbiotic, or Oxadrop, and were treated for 6 weeks. Patients were maintained on a controlled diet to remove the confounding variable of differing oxalate intake and availability from food.

Conditions

• Nephrolithiasis
• Hyperoxaluria
• Crohn's Disease

Interventions

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Oxadrop

Oxadrop 1 packet daily plus 1 placebo capsule twice daily. Each gram of Oxadrop® contains 2x1011 bacteria (L. acidophilus, L. brevis, S. thermophilus, and B. infantis).

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Agri-King Synbiotic (AKSB)

AKSB 1 capsule twice daily plus 1 placebo packet daily. AKSB contains Fructo-oligosaccharide; Enterococcus faecium (SF68); Saccharomyces cerevisiae subspecies Boulardi; and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

OTHER

Placebo

1 placebo packet daily and 1 placebo capsule twice daily

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institutes of Health (NIH)

  collaborator NIH

• National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

  collaborator NIH

• National Center for Research Resources (NCRR)

  collaborator NIH

• National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

  collaborator NIH

• Mayo Clinic

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• John C Lieske, MD · Mayo Clinic

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

TRIPLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2006-02-28

Primary Completion

2009-07-31

Completion

2009-07-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations