10 August 2011

Faecal Transplants.. who's next?

A dangerous strain of disease which can cause kidney failure and even death is being successfully treated with everyday bacteria found in the stools of healthy people.

Mutated by the overuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics, Clostridium difficile — a bacteria that can take over the intestines and destroy the bowel — kills up to 300 people a day in US hospitals and is now here in Australia.

Healthy bacteria from a donor poo is transplanted into the colon of the sick patient with remarkable results.



3 comments:

  1. Ah, and I thought swapping body fluids was intimate.

    ~M

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  2. That is actually a very good idea. It's taking probiotics a stage further, but it's something that has been tried in rabbits before. A healthy gut flora is the first line of defense against a lot of enteric pathogens :))

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  3. I wonder what they tell others when they get out.

    "Oh I'd a crap operation" he he....

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