'Poop Pills' Could Replace Fecal Transplants of Gut Bacteria

If you're one of those people that has trouble swallowing pills, try not to think what's in these ones as they go down: A researcher has shown that encapsulated bacteria from human feces effectively treated 100 percent of patients with relapsing Clostridium difficile infections. Every year, half a million Americans suffer such an infection. The resulting combination of cramps, nausea and diarrhea can range from uncomfortable to deadly; about 14,000 people die from C. difficile annually in the U.S. alone. There are only two real treatment options for drug-resistant strains of the bacteria. One is an über powerful antibiotic (that wipes out good and bad bacteria alike, making the gut vulnerable to recolonization by friend or foe). The other is a fecal transplant by enema, colonoscopy, or a nasal tube to the gut. The latter has proven effective in about 9 out of 10 patients, but still has a strong ...