Unexpected complication of fecal therapy
The journal Open Forum Infectious Diseases published articles describing how a woman who was successfully cured of a severe intestinal infection caused by C.difficile with the help of fecal transplantation from an overweight donor quickly gained weight.
Fecal microbiota transplantation (TFM) is an effective method of treating recurrent clostridium infection, which is a common cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea, which in particularly severe cases can be life-threatening for patients.
At the time of fecal microbiota transplantation in 2011, a 32-year-old patient who had never been overweight before had a stable body weight of about 61 kg and a body mass index of 26. The feces of her teenage daughter, who was overweight but did not suffer from other diseases, were used for transplantation.
After 16 months, the woman's body weight reached 77 kg, and the body mass index was 33, which meets the medical criteria for obesity. The patient's body weight continued to increase despite a doctor-supervised diet based on protein-enriched beverages and an exercise program. Incessant efforts, consisting in following a diet and regular physical activity, did not provide a reduction in body weight. Three years after the therapy, the woman's weight was already 80 kg, and the body mass index was 34.5. To date, the woman is still obese.
Theoretically, the increase in the patient's body weight could be caused by other reasons. In addition to fecal microbiota transplantation, she underwent a course of combined antibiotic therapy against Helicobacter pylori. Other possible causes of weight gain may be getting rid of clostridium, genetic factors, aging and stress associated with the disease. However, as mentioned earlier, before the therapy, the woman had never been overweight.
According to one of the authors of the article, Dr. Colleen R. Kelly, most likely, the bacteria contained in the transplanted material had a negative effect on the woman's metabolism. The existence of such a relationship between bacteria inhabiting the digestive tract and metabolism is described in previously published animal studies. According to available data, the introduction of intestinal bacteria from obese mice to healthy animals can lead to a significant increase in fat deposits in the latter.
The results of animal experiments and the described case indicate the need for a detailed study of the delayed effects of fecal microbiota transplantation and more careful selection of donors, in particular, screening out overweight and obese people.
Articles by N. Alang et al. Weight Gain After Fecal Microbiota Transplantation and Ana A. Weil et al. Fecal Microbiota Transplant: Benefits and Risks are published in the journal Open Forum Infectious Diseases.
Evgeniya Ryabtseva
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on EurekAlert materials:
Rapid and unexpected weight gain after fecal transplant.
06.02.2015