Did you have screening and testing done on your donor for FT?

Hi there. My first post. 28 yo female diagnosed with UC in 2010 at age 25. Strangely enough after a hefty dosing of antibiotics and NSAIDs for dental purposes. I also am curious about FT. I had bowel surgery in May 2013 which was ineffective. My surgeon is encouraging me to try FT. I myself am an RN and understand the importance of donor screening but it is expensive.... And I do not currently have insurance. Yep a nurse with no health insurance. My $420/20 day supply enemas are not helping this flare and I am becoming desperate. There are many articles about DIY FT online and I would also like to hear from anyone who has done it.

Yes. I screened my sister's stool for parasites, cysts, ova and c.diff toxins. I forgot to ask for a c.diff culture but many labs dont do that anyway, they just test for toxins A & B. I think i also got them to try culturing a bacteria which was negative.

I didnt have her blood tested because shes afraid of needles but i trust her since i live with her and am aware, more or less, of her movements. She's not one to be promiscuous so I am not worried about HIV or any if those sorts of diseases.

Only issue I have, aside from not testing her for the c.diff culture, is that she only moves her bowels every 3 - 4 days. Whilst she doesn't have any other GI symptoms, i cant imagine only having a BM every 3 - 4 days as being healthy. At least its better than me, moving my bowels 5 - 6 times a day.

In my opinion, screening is vital if you dont know the person. If you trust the person and are aware of their lifestyle, then screening, whilst important (as people sometimes carry harmful bacteria but are asymptomatic) doesnt hold as much necessity. Blood testing is only to test for any possible STDs or other communicable diseases.

In the end, i advise getting the sample tested because it provides more clarity over the procedure. If you dont have it tested and you end up getting worse, you'll be guessing... "was it that the stools had pathogens/harmful bacteria?". At least if you tested the sample, you can rule out immediately that the sample was bad and you can investigate other possibilities for the procedure not working.

Banana girl, I was told by the MD/GI who is in charge of FMT trials for c-diff. that it "may" make me flare but is not contraindicated for CD. I was told it should very well help my c-diff. So, maybe that is what happened to you. It may have instituted a flare.
I decided to take the Vancomycin tonight and will make arrangements to go see this GI and also renew my prescription for Cimzia in case it makes me flare. So, for now, I will try this Vanc and pray I don't react on it.
MaxMillian and Marooch85, if you are interested, there is a secret support group on facebook that is very helpful with FMT. The name is Fecal Microbiota Transplant. Lots of information there!

Banana girl, Well, scratch my Cimzia idea. No biologics till c-diff is resolved! How did you get your flare under control?

Bananagirl, That is very good to know that you were able to get back to where you were after stopping FT. So far the side effects I have from Vanc are major gerd symtoms- heartburn, reflux, some nausea and diarrhea and that is only after 3 doses. Did you have that? Did you take anything to help with it? I sure hope it doesn't get worse than this. I am on 125mg four times per day for 14 days. C-diff really sucks. I called and made an appointment with the Dr. that does the c-diff FT trials . His first appointment was until March but I told the appointment coordinator he wanted to see me sooner so she is sending him a message so maybe he will move my appointment up. At least, I hope he will!

I am praying hard for you that Simponi works for you! Any side effects from it yet?

Thanks Bloom! I hope to give it a try in the future, may be after meeting with a new GI if my c-diff hasn't resolved.