Pills created from fecal matter are the latest breakthrough in treating Clostridium difficile, according to a doctor in Canada who says he has cured about 30 people this way.
The pills are made by putting fecal matter through a centrifuge and filling capsules with the resulting substance, Thomas Louie, M.D., told news sources. He presented his findings at the IDWeek 2013 conference in San Francisco this week.
Patients with C. diff take dozens of the pills, which Louie said he currently is making exclusively as needed. He said that out of 27 C. diff patients who have received this treatment, no one has had a recurrence, The Associated Press reported.
While fecal transplants have emerged as an effective way of combating C. diff, certain patients have conditions, such as incontinence, preventing them from receiving a transplant through customary methods. Louie said he developed his pills to provide a cure for these individuals.
Some physicians, such as Emory University School of Medicine’s Colleen Kraft, M.D., believe Louie has made a significant breakthrough. “This is clearly the future of fecal transplant therapy,” Kraft told NBC News.
