The gut is home to a delicate balance of billions of bacteria which aid in the absorption and digestion of food.
Fecal transplantation (or bacteriotherapy) is the transfer of stool from a healthy donor into the gastrointestinal tract of a recipient to replace lost “good bacteria” in the bowel of children/adults where antibiotics and/or inflammatory disease processes have altered/destroyed the bowel microbiome (e.g., antibiotic treatment of recurrent C. Difficile and ulcerative colitis (UC). “Acceptance of this treatment (usually via colonoscopy, enema, nasogastric tube or in capsule form) particularly among children and their parents is an important aspect of assessing its feasibility for inflammatory bowel disease”.
An interview based randomized controlled trial study of children (and their parents) who received bi-weekly FMT treatment for 6 weeks assessed (by face-to-face, semi-structured interviews) the perceptions and experiences of FMT in a population of pediatric UC patients.
Pre-treatment, children and parents express concern regarding the possibility of physical discomfort with FMT administration.
Post-treatment, a majority of children perceive FMT as a “natural treatment” which felt “completely normal”. Both children and parents expressed interest in perusing FMT treatment again in the future.
