Microecology, bacterial vaginosis and probiotics: Perspectives for bacteriotherapy

Probiotics enriched in lactobacilli have been proposed as an effective and alternative tool to antibiotics for the treatment of bacterial vaginosis. The protective role of H 2O 2-producing lactobacilli has been strongly emphasized, but no clear-cut correlation appears to link the metabolic characteristics of administered lactobacilli with the clinical impact of probiotic therapy. On account of our review of basic mechanisms involved in bacterial vaginosis, we suggest that lactobacilli with an elevated arginine deiminase activity could have a greater therapeutic potential than strains producing only H 2O 2. Preliminary results from our laboratory have demonstrated that treatment with probiotics containing arginine deiminase-positive lactobacilli improves clinical symptoms and is paralleled by a significant decline of polyamine levels in vaginal microenvironment. This is of outstanding interest due to the central role of polyamines in the pathogenesis of bacterial vaginosis. We should critically rethink, against this perspective, the use of probiotics for the treatment of affected women. © 2001 Harcourt Publishers Ltd.