UK approves faecal transplants to treat antibiotic-resistant infections

Faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has reached an important milestone with the publication of a new British guideline, which recognizes its effectiveness in treating certain recurrent intestinal infections.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence issued a recommendation this week indicating that it should be used to treat infections. Applicants Clostridium difficile – The most common cause of antibiotic-associated colitis, advanced Conversation.

The Clostridium difficile A bacterium that causes debilitating diarrhea is usually treated with broad-spectrum antibiotics. But these are less effective with each attack.

To perform an MPT, a healthy donor is first found. Your stool can be frozen at -80°C and stored for up to six months. They are then transplanted into the patient’s intestine. Transplant surgery Restores the function of intestinal microflora.

The treatment allows the replacement of bacteria that are important for maintaining gut health and could work in a variety of disorders, from cancer to dementia.

The first reports of this treatment appear texts It has been used in traditional Chinese medicine since the 4th century and has been prescribed to treat diarrhea. The first transplant in the modern era took place in 1958, when US Army doctor Ben Eisman successfully treated soldiers with diarrhea.

Fecal transplant surgery continued into the 20th century. In the United Kingdom, studies by Peter Hockey, professor of clinical bacteriology and public health at the University of Birmingham, have shown that this treatment has been used to treat infections. Clostridium difficile.

Upon arriving at the University of Birmingham in 2001, Hockey created a unit to treat patients in regional hospitals. After a while, the infection caused by infectious diseases Clostridium difficile attacked the British. Despite the need for effective treatment, the first transplant was performed only in 2013.

That same year, it was Published A research paper demonstrating the efficacy of TMF. In 2016, the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency presented an award to the University of Birmingham. license Treatment should be initiated across the country.

Over the past six years, the team has treated hundreds of patients in the UK. In addition to providing relief to patients with chronic intestinal problems, TMF is also being used in clinical trials, i.e. treatment Colon ulcer.