Use of Probiotics for Oral Candidiasis: State of the Art and Perspective. A Further Step Toward Personalized Medicine?

Abstract

Oral candidiasis is an opportunistic infection conventionally treated with antifungal drugs. However, the increasing number of fungal infections, parallel to the rising conditions sustained by non-albicans species, pose critical issues related to escalating drug resistances differently acquired by different species. Meanwhile, the knowledge of the interplay between oral microbiota and its host suggests alternative antifungal therapies based on the administration of probiotics. Probiotics are live microorganisms beneficial to the host, and literature reports consistent evidence for their use to treat gut diseases. The present work aimed to overview the primary mechanisms through which probiotics act against Candida species and the current status of knowledge on their use in clinical practice, particularly concerning oral candidiasis.

Keywords: candida species; dentistry; dysbiosis; functional food; infectious diseases; microbiota; oral candidiasis; probiotics; therapy.