This issue of Topics in Clinical Nutrition focuses on probiotics, as well as nutrition screening and assessment to identify malnutrition in the hospitalized population. Three articles highlight probiotics, including a narrative review of probiotics in health and disease and 2 systematic reviews-probiotics in influenza-like illnesses and probiotics in preventing antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) in children. A third systematic review evaluates the role of selenium supplementation in critically ill patients. The remaining articles highlight how validated tools for nutrition screening and assessment can effectively capture nutrition risk and malnutrition diagnoses in adult and pediatric inpatients.

Comess and Abad-Jorge of Norfolk State University provide the first of a 2-part narrative review of the microbiome. This review highlights the evolution and function of the microbiome as well as factors impacting its diversity. The role of the microbiome in gut-brain interactions and in conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease is discussed.

Ghasemi Nour et al of Mashhad University of Medical Science in Iran evaluated the effect of probiotic consumption on the symptoms and course of the common cold, influenza, and influenza-like illnesses. Twenty randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included in the qualitative synthesis, and 17 were included in the meta-analysis. Findings indicate that probiotic consumption reduced the incidence of the common cold and influenza-like illness episodes, while no significant decrease in influenza episodes was found.

Fadin et al of Brazil conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis evaluating probiotic use in preventing AAD in children. Twelve studies were included in the analysis and suggest that Lactobacillus rhamnosus may be useful in preventing AAD in children. Further study is needed to identify the most appropriate dose and timing of probiotic administration in AAD prevention.

Hasani et al of Iran conducted a systemic review and meta-analysis examining the effects of selenium supplementation on antioxidant markers, including glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity, in adult critically ill patients. Since plasma selenium levels and GPx activity are low in sepsis, increasing selenium levels may be associated with improved outcomes. Ten RCTs were included, and results showed that although selenium supplementation was associated with nonsignificant increased GPx activity, selenium administration had no significant effect on GPx activity or C-reactive protein levels.

Cao et al of Tianjin Medical University Second Hospital in China studied a 3-step procedure of nutrition risk screening using the Nutritional Risk Screening 2002 (NRS2002), evaluation using the Mini-Nutritional Assessment Short Form (MNA-SF), and malnutrition diagnosis using the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria in Chinese elderly inpatients. The GLIM criteria provide consistent malnutrition diagnosis compared with the MNA-SF and the NRS2002, but its stricter standards result in fewer malnutrition diagnoses.

Zheng et al of West China Hospital of Sichuan University in China investigated the prevalence of nutrition risk using the NRS2002, MNA-SF, or the Screening Tool for the Assessment of Malnutrition in Pediatrics (STAMP), as well as malnutrition prevalence using the Subjective Global Assessment (SGA), Mini-Nutrition Assessment (MNA), and the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) through a process titled the Nutrition Risk Screening, Nutrition Status Assessment, and Nutrition Support Action (NRASA) protocol in hospitalized patients. Nutritional risk was identified in about 19% of adult patients, and almost 67% of inpatients were classified with malnutrition. The MNA-SF identified more patients at nutritional risk than the NRS2002. The NRASA successfully identified nutrition risk and malnutrition in Chinese inpatients.

Caferoglu et al of Turkey compared the diagnostic accuracy of the Pediatric Nutrition Screening Tool (PNST) and the Pediatric Yorkhill Malnutrition Score (PYMS) in pediatric inpatients. The sensitivity of the PNST with original cutoffs was lower than that of the PYMS and the PNST with adjusted cutoffs identifying that the latter 2 tools may be useful screening tools, especially for identifying acute malnutrition in pediatric inpatients.

Thank you for your contributions to Topics in Clinical Nutrition. The editorial board is grateful to our many authors and reviewers for reviewing, producing, and sharing their research and reviews.

-Kelly Kane, MS, RD

Editor