Choice of probiotic for rational therapy of infection caused by Klebsiella in children

Abstract To choose lactobacilli-contained probiotic for complex treatment of acute enteric infection caused by Klebsiella in infants. On the basis of bacteriological analysis the group consisting of 40 infants with acute enteric infection caused by Klebsiella was formed. Efficacy of three probiotic preparations--lactobacterin, vitaflor, and biobacton--was assessed depending on biological features of causative agents and contents of lactobacilli and bifidobacteria in obligate gut microflora. Intraspecies antagonistic characteristics of manufacturing strains of lactobacilli against 9 clinical isolates of K. pneumoniae and 8 strains of indigenous lactoflora, as well as interspecies antagonism between Klebsiella and probiotic and indigenous strains of lactoflora were studied. It was shown that complex therapy of Klebsiella infection in infants using vitaflor or biobacton promoted elimination of K. pneumoniae and restoration of indigenous microflora which became apparent in significant increase of titer of lactobacilli. In vitro maximal antagonism to K. pneumoniae was noted for vitaflor, lactobacterin and heteroenzyme autostrains of ill children's lactoflora. Contrantagonism to lactoflora was typical for slowly growing strains of Klebsiella. It is therapeutically rational to use vitaflor, which promotes rapid elimination of infectious agent, in initial phase of acute infection caused by Klebsiella, and biobacton, which increases the titers of indigenous lactoflora, in phase of convalescence.