Vaginal probiotics prevent recurrent urinary tract infections

Not surprisingly considering the profound importance of our microbial ecology for immune and barrier tissue health, a study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases offers evidence that probiotic organisms applied intravaginally can put a halt to recurrent urinary tract infections. The authors state:

"Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common among women and frequently recur. Depletion of vaginal lactobacilli is associated with UTI risk, which suggests that repletion may be beneficial. We conducted a double-blind placebo-controlled trial of a Lactobacillus crispatus intravaginal suppository probiotic (Lactin-V; Osel) for prevention of recurrent UTI in premenopausal women."

They treated 100 young women with a history of recurrent UTI with antimicrobials for an acute UTI, randomized them to receive either the probiotic or placebo daily for 5 days, then once weekly for 10 weeks. The subjects were followed up at 1 and 10 week intervals with urine cultures and PCR for the probiotic by vaginal swabs. What did the data show?

"Recurrent UTI occurred in 7/48 15% of women receiving Lactin-V compared with 13/48 27% of women receiving placebo. High-level vaginal colonization with L. crispatus throughout follow-up was associated with a significant reduction in recurrent UTI..."

The microbial ecology is as important in the genitourinary region as elsewhere. I have a preference for a multi-species formula for this purpose.