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51/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 51 out of 100. Inflammation and the immune system

Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis

Plain-language summary

Background Dysbiosis of intestinal microbiota in the elderly can cause a leaky gut, which may result in silent systemic inflammation and promote neuroinflammation - a relevant pathomechanism in the early course of Alzheimer's disease. Objective The rebalancing of the microbiome could benefically impact on gut inflammation and immune activation. Methods In this study, routine laboratory tests in twenty outpatients (9 females, 11 males, aged 76.7 ± 9.6 years) with Alzheimer's disease were investigated.

What this study adds

Evidence grade: Low

The record lists 18 participants. This small study of twenty outpatients with Alzheimer's disease investigated whether probiotic supplementation could affect gut inflammation and immune activation markers. It is an exploratory intervention study with a very small sample, so it cannot yet show whether probiotics help treat or prevent Alzheimer's disease.

Taken from this record’s own fields, not from reading the paper. The grade is assigned from the abstract’s wording; what that means.

Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris

APA 7th

Leblhuber, F., Steiner, K., Schuetz, B., Fuchs, D., & Gostner, J. M. (2018). Probiotic Supplementation in Patients with Alzheimer's Dementia - An Explorative Intervention Study. Current Alzheimer research. https://doi.org/10.2174/1389200219666180813144834

Vancouver

Leblhuber F, Steiner K, Schuetz B, Fuchs D, Gostner JM. Probiotic Supplementation in Patients with Alzheimer's Dementia - An Explorative Intervention Study. Current Alzheimer research. 2018. doi:10.2174/1389200219666180813144834. PMID: 30101706.

BibTeX

@article{leblhuber2018-30101706,
  author  = {Leblhuber, F. and Steiner, K. and Schuetz, B. and Fuchs, D. and Gostner, J. M.},
  title   = {{Probiotic Supplementation in Patients with Alzheimer's Dementia - An Explorative Intervention Study}},
  journal = {Current Alzheimer research},
  year    = {2018},
  doi     = {10.2174/1389200219666180813144834},
  pmid    = {30101706},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.2174/1389200219666180813144834}
}

Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.

How to read this study

Design: our record does not state a study design, so check the methods section of the original before weighing the result.
Size: the record lists 18 participants. Ask whether that is enough for the question, and who they were.
Effect: the record gives no effect size, so the summary above cannot say how large any difference was.

What the evidence grade means here

This page is graded low. alzhub.org assigns the grade automatically from keywords in the abstract, not from reading the paper. Low means the abstract matched neither pattern. It is the default label, and it does not mean the work is poor; many sound lab and imaging papers land here. It can add at most 5 of the 100 points in the study score, and it is a label about design, not a verdict on whether the findings are true.

New to reading papers? Six questions to ask of any Alzheimer’s study · how we score.

Key findings

Objective The rebalancing of the microbiome could benefically impact on gut inflammation and immune activation.
Methods In this study, routine laboratory tests in twenty outpatients (9 females, 11 males, aged 76.7 ± 9.6 years) with Alzheimer's disease were investigated.
The mean Mini Mental State Examination score was 18.5 ± 7.7.
Biomarkers of immune activation - serum neopterin and tryptophan breakdown - as well as gut inflammation markers and microbiota composition in fecal specimens were analyzed in 18 patients before and after probiotic supplementation for 4 weeks.

Why it matters

This small study of twenty outpatients with Alzheimer's disease investigated whether probiotic supplementation could affect gut inflammation and immune activation markers. It is an exploratory intervention study with a very small sample, so it cannot yet show whether probiotics help treat or prevent Alzheimer's disease.

Study details

Participants18
Evidence strengthLow

How this study scored 51/100

Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	7 / 10	Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Current Alzheimer research)
Journal's citation record	1 / 4	Current Alzheimer Research: journal h-index 119 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	0 / 12	No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Strength of evidence	1 / 5	Rated “low” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	2 / 5	2018 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	1 / 4	18 participants
Effect reported	0 / 3	No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Studied in people	3 / 3	Studied in people (participant count stated)
Randomized / blinded	0 / 2	No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Times cited	5 / 7	Cited 269 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	4 / 5	26.9 citations a year over 10 year(s) since 2018
Impact for its field and year	3 / 6	Cited 7.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	2 / 6	Cited by 5 other studies in this library
Still being cited	3 / 4	Cited 82 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	2 / 4	Last-listed author Johanna Maria Gostner: h-index 33 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	1 / 3	Universität Innsbruck: institution h-index 803 (OpenAlex)
Multicenter collaboration	2 / 3	OpenAlex lists 6 institution(s) in 2 countries
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 30101706)
Free to read	2 / 2	Free to read
Total	51 / 100	—

What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →

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