Donated Human Stool Treats C.difficile Infection

The researchers from Henry Ford Hospital have come up with a novel therapy to treat this deadly and contagious infection.  They used donated human stool to treat C.difficile infection and found that this method was safe was highly effective.

Clostridium difficile often known as C.difficile is a bacterium that triggers symptoms such as diarrhea or life threatening inflammation of the colon.  Illness from C. difficile most commonly affects older adults in hospitals or in long term care facilities and typically occurs after use of antibiotic medications. It is estimated that 20,000 infections with C.difficile occur in the community each year in the U.S.

But the researchers from Henry Ford Hospital have come up with a novel therapy to treat this deadly and contagious infection.  They used donated human stool to treat C.difficile infection and found that this method was safe was highly effective.

For the study, the researchers evaluated 49 patients who contracted Clostridium difficile, The patients of C,diff show symptoms such as  water diarrhea, fever, loss of appetite, nausea and abdominal pain and tenderness. C.diff occurs in patients taking antibiotics, and can spread from person-to-person contact or from touching contaminated equipment and objects like door knobs.

On analyzing these patients the researcher found that 43 of 49 patients recovered swiftly after treatment and had no adverse complications from C. diff three months later. The researchers carried out their treatment either through nasogastric tube or colonscopy on an outpatient or inpatient basis.

Mayur Ramesh, M.D., a Henry Ford Infectious Diseases physician and senior author of the study, says, "The treatment, while appearing unconventional, has striking results."

"More than 90 percent of the patients in our study were cured of their C.diff nfection," says Dr. Ramesh. "This treatment is a viable option for patients who are not responding to conventional treatment and who want to avoid surgery."

In this study, Henry Ford treated patients between May 2010 and June 2012 with a therapy called intestinal microbiota transplantation (IMT), using donated stool from a healthy family member.

Generally the antibiotic s metronidazole or vancomycin is used to cure patients who are victim of C.diff.

Dr. Ramesh says the healthy stool, when mixed with warm tap water and administered, helps to re-establish the normal intestinal flora in the patient's gastrointestinal tract. Intestinal flora is healthy bacteria that stimulates the immune system and aids the digestion and absorption of food.

"Patients who receive treatment through a nasogastric tube don't taste or smell the stool mixture as it's administered," Dr. Ramesh says. "Patients often resume their diet within a couple hours and are feeling better within 24 hours."

This study that was funded by Henry Ford Hospital noticed that out of 49 patients, 43 fully recovered, four died of causes unrelated to C.diff, one had intestinal surgery and one had no improvement.

The study was presented October 19 at the annual Infectious Diseases Society of America meeting in San Diego.