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The Effect of Prebiotics, Alone or as Part of Synbiotics, on Cardiometabolic Parameters in Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Biomedicines
January 13, 2025
Elham Razmpoosh et al. (3 authors)
Journal ArticleReviewHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to investigate the effects of prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics, on cardiometabolic parameters in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Results Summary

The study found high-quality evidence supporting prebiotics' effectiveness in reducing body-mass index and diastolic blood pressure, moderate-quality evidence for improvements in weight, waist-to-hip ratio, and triglycerides, and low or very-low-quality evidence for other cardiometabolic parameters. Subgroup analyses suggested additional benefits for LDL reduction with prebiotics and improvements in waist circumference, total cholesterol, and total testosterone with synbiotics.

Population

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) (n = 1271).

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (20)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
decrease
body-mass index
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
WMD: -0.510, 95%CI: -0.669, -0.351 kg/m2
reducing
#1
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
decrease
diastolic blood pressure
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
WMD: -2.218, 95%CI: -4.425, -0.010 mmHg
reducing
#2
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
weight
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#3
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
waist-to-hip ratio
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#4
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
triglycerides
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#5
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
waist circumference (WC)
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#6
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
fat mass
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#7
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
fasting plasma glucose
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#8
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
fasting insulin
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#9
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
low-density lipoprotein (LDL)
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#10
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
total cholesterol (TC)
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#11
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
high sensitive-C reactive protein
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#12
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
total testosterone
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#13
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
follicle-stimulating hormone
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#14
prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics
increase
free androgen index
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improvements
#15
prebiotics
decrease
LDL
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
possible reduction
#16
synbiotics
decrease
WC
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
possible decreases
#17
synbiotics
decrease
TC
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
possible decreases
#18
synbiotics
decrease
total testosterone
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
possible decreases
#19
Dietary approaches to stop hypertension diet
increase
insulin sensitivity
polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women
-
improved
#20
Abstract

Background/Objectives: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the effect of prebiotics, alone or as part of synbiotics, on cardiometabolic parameters in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women. Methods: Databases, including PubMed, Scopus, ISI Web of Science, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, were searched for relevant randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) until 12 December 2024. Changes in mean ± standard deviations were extracted and combined using a random-effects model. Bias was assessed using Cochrane risk of bias and evidence quality with GRADE. Results: Twenty RCTs with 1271 participants were included. Results showed high-quality evidence supporting prebiotics' effects, alone or as part of synbiotics, in reducing body-mass index [n = 853; weighted-mean difference (WMD): -0.510, 95%CI: -0.669, -0.351 kg/m2] and diastolic blood pressure (WMD: -2.218, 95%CI: -4.425, -0.010 mmHg), moderate-quality evidence for weight, waist-to-hip ratio, and triglycerides improvements, and low or very-low-quality evidence for waist circumference (WC), fat mass, fasting plasma glucose, fasting insulin, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), total cholesterol (TC), high sensitive-C reactive protein, total testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone and free androgen index improvements. Subgroup analyses revealed possible reduction in LDL with prebiotics, as well as possible decreases in WC, TC, and total testosterone with synbiotics. Dietary approaches to stop hypertension diet improved insulin sensitivity. Conclusions: This study suggests that prebiotics may beneficially affect several cardiometabolic parameters in PCOS women. Approximately one-third of the results were based on moderate-to-high-quality evidence. This study highlights the need for future well-designed, larger RCTs with longer treatment duration to strengthen the evidence base and guide clinical decision-making.

Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy75/10
Quality85/10
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.05
Weight Score2.70
Normalized Score0.67
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