Feces-Filled Capsules Treat Bacterial Infection

sciencehabit writes Clostridium difficile infections kill approximately 14,000 Americans every year, often because the diarrhea-causing bacteria are highly resistant to standard antibiotics. Now, scientists have found an unusual way to combat the bugs: human feces in pill form. In the new study, researchers show that frozen fecal matter encapsulated in clear, 1.6 g synthetic pills was just as safe and effective as traditional fecal transplant techniques at treating C. difficile. Within 8 weeks or less, 18 out of 20 participants saw a complete resolution of diarrhea after consuming 30 or 60 of the feces-filled capsules. "It's probably not the best experience of your life," says team leader Ilan Youngster, a pediatric infectious disease doctor at Harvard University. "But it beats getting a tube stuck down your throat or a colonoscopy or having C. diff."

Comments

Re:It's probably not the best experience of your l

[ColdWetDog]

Typically the stuff has been spun down and freeze dried so it's not so bad....

Re:Timeframe?

[Greyfox]

Once you've been crapping your organs out for a couple months, I'm sure you'd be willing to try just about anything.