Probiotic enemas? Why not any stuedies on them?

Do you know any research studies or reports on probiotic enemas? This time I don't mean fecal transfusion but inserting specifics probiotic enemas instead of just taking them in oral form. I have not found any. This seems very strange for me because it has been found that probiotics are very useful and they are recommended and studied for many diseases. However if you have some inbalance in rectum, for instance, it would seem much more effective to insert these directly there instead of eating them which results in very low count in the end area (colon and rectum). However,  these doctors and researchers have made extensive studies and clinical use on 5-ASA type of substance, corticosterodes and many other substances as enema form. Why are they avoiding less harmful but probably more effective probiotic enemas.

princesa said...
Because probiotics can't be patented and pharmaceutical companies can't benefit financially from them. There are few studies of natural, alternative treatments because there are no huge companies willing to fund their research. Also, if there was a highly effective, natural treatment, millions of IBD patients wouldn't need their maintenance medications - resulting in a huge financial loss for both pharmceuticals and physicians.

The Centre for Digestive Diseases in Sydney, Australia is one clinic that has been studying and using probiotics - both orally and rectally - and has had much success. From their Web site:


Researchers at the Centre for Digestive Diseases have been trialing the use of living organisms to treat ulcerative colitis on the basis of restoring the balance of healthy bacteria in the bowel. Our results are at the forefront of world research in this field and may eventually provide a valuable alternative to the current immunosuppressant medications with the added benefit of no side effects.


This is true. I'm very thankful for the research, development and guidance Australia’s Centre for Digestive Diseases has undertaken. So far so good for me. I'm off all meds and currently have no reason to see my GI. I believe if a fecal transplant does not work 100% for you it will most certainly improve your condition by at least 50% - 60%. That goes a long ways for most people. It could mean the difference of losing your colon or keeping your colon. It could mean getting off of steroids verses increasing the dosage. It could mean having less frequent flares of less intensity. The best thing about it is you could always do another “top up” infusion or use another donor until you are 100%

princesa said...
Well, fecal infusions and probiotic infusions or enemas are two different things. The OP is asking specifically about probiotics.

Actually there not that far off from each other. Fecal transplant otherwise known as Human Probiotic Infusion is the ultimate probiotic. The difference is the probiotics in human feces have the ability to implant themselves. You mentioned Australia’s Centre for Digestive Disease's has been studying probiotics. Well their studies entail Human Probiotic Infusions not manufactured over the counter probiotics.

A quick pubmed search did yield some hits on probiotic enemas but still with rats, not humans. E.g. (paste it as one string if it doesn't click as a link)

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17505654?ordinalpos=2&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

which indicated some benefit.

I agree with Princesa on the funding issue- it's not that pharmaceuticals are conspiring to suppress anything, but there is simply no incentive i.e. money in funding non-drug approaches (although individual probiotic strains can be patented if newly discovered).  The same dilemma is faced with helminths (parasitic worms) as therapy- existing worms can't be patented (although Weinstock HAS patented TSO as a therapy, so go figure!- but I don't see how you can succeed in court for an organism that already exists and is long-discovered, in nature.)