Contemporary use of prophylactic probiotics in NICUs in the United States: a survey update

Objective In 2015, 14.0% of US NICUs administered probiotics to very low birth weight infants. Current probiotic use prior to and after the Fall of 2023 (when FDA warnings were issued) remains unknown. Study design A survey was distributed to the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Neonatal an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of perinatology 2024-05, Vol.44 (5), p.739-744
Main Authors: Wala, Samantha J., Ragan, Mecklin V., Pryor, Erin, Canvasser, Jennifer, Diefenbach, Karen A., Besner, Gail E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
692/700/1720
692/700/459/1994
Birth weight
Dietitians
FDA approval
Gestational age
Hospitals
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Infant, Premature
Infant, Very Low Birth Weight
Infants
Intensive Care Units, Neonatal
Low birth weight
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Neonatal care
Neonatal nursing
Neonates
Newborn babies
Nurse practitioners
Nutrition
Pediatric Surgery
Pediatrics
Polls & surveys
Practice Patterns, Physicians' - statistics & numerical data
Premature babies
Premature birth
Probiotics
Probiotics - administration & dosage
Probiotics - therapeutic use
Sepsis
Surveys
Surveys and Questionnaires
United States
United States Food and Drug Administration
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Summary:Objective In 2015, 14.0% of US NICUs administered probiotics to very low birth weight infants. Current probiotic use prior to and after the Fall of 2023 (when FDA warnings were issued) remains unknown. Study design A survey was distributed to the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Neonatal and Perinatal Medicine (August–November/2022) and Neonatology Solutions’ Level III/IV NICUs (January–April/2023). Probiotic administration practices were investigated. Results In total, 289 unique NICUs and 406 providers responded to the survey. Of those, 29.1% of NICUs administered prophylactic probiotics to premature neonates, however, this decreased considerably after FDA warnings were issued. Additionally, 71.4% of providers stated willingness to administer probiotics to premature infants if there was an FDA-approved formulation. Conclusions Probiotic use in US NICUs increased between 2015 and the Fall of 2023 and then dropped dramatically following warning letters from the FDA. The introduction of an FDA-approved probiotic may further expand administration.
ISSN:0743-8346
1476-5543
DOI:10.1038/s41372-024-01952-0