BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Abdominal colic during infancy is a common complaint of parents within the first three months after the child’s birth. As the intestinal microflora in these infants is different from non-colic newborns, we aimed to determine the effects of probiotics on the balance of intestinal microflora and reducing restlessness in infants with colic.

METHODS: This randomized clinical trial was performed on 44 breastfed infants (20-60 days old), with a birth weight of > 2500 g, suffering from colic, based on Wessel’s definition. These infants received 1-5 drops of placebo (label 1) per day for five consecutive days. Afterwards, they were administered 2-5 drops of Lactobacillus reuteri (label2) (17938 DSM) per day for 14 consecutive days. The parents were contacted twice on a daily basis and the duration of cramps and restlessness in infants was recorded and evaluated (IRCT=2014012713489).

FINDINGS: Among 44 infants, 36 cases completed the study. The mean period of restlessness after 5 days of receiving placebo and L. reuteri was 275±142.8 and 172±88.3 min, respectively (p<0.001). Also, after 14 days of L. reuteri administration, the mean period of restlessness was 106±53.67 min.

CONCLUSION: The results showed that probiotic L. reuteri reduced crying and restlessness duration in infants
with colic.