# Successful Treatment of a Crohn’s Disease Patient Infected With Bacteremic Mycobacter



## kiny

*Successful Treatment of a Crohn’s Disease Patient Infected With Bacteremic Mycobacter*

Haven't read this one before if anyone wants to.


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17335456

_The presence and subsequent disappearance of Mycobacterium paratuberculosis DNA in the blood from a Crohn’s disease patient associated with complete clinical remission._

At the age of 43, this male patient was hospitalized with
severe colitis and mouth ulcers. 

At age 48, the patient was diagnosed with granulomatous colitis; however, the symptoms subsided without specific therapy until age 58, when he re-experienced the same symptoms including the detection of granulomatous colitis and was finally diagnosed with Crohn’s disease for which he received increasing doses of mesalamine, prednisone 60 mg daily, and 6-MP 100 mg daily.

At age 63, this Crohn’s disease patient refused treatment
with infliximab because of concern of possible
side effects. The result of his colonoscopy was consistent
with severe Crohn’s disease, in which the cecum and
right colon were severely involved, but skip lesions were
found in the transverse, descending, and sigmoid.

*The patient consented to give two 4-mL tubes of blood for analyses
of the presence of M. paratuberculosis, the causative
agent of Johne’s disease in cattle. M. paratuberculosis DNA was present in the patient’s blood.
*

Consequently, the patient started treatment
consisting of split doses of *clarithromycin* 1,000 mg
daily, *rifabutin* 300–450 mg daily, and *levofloxacin* 500 mg
daily.



Three weeks later, his Crohn’s disease symptoms of
abdominal pains, diarrhea, and fatigue disappeared.


----------



## kiny

I should also note that the person's tests for M. para were negative after the treatment.


----------



## D Bergy

What surprises me is not the result, but the relatively short time it took to eliminate the bacteria.

It was my understanding that the MAP bacteria takes years of antibiotic use, to get rid of it.

Maybe that is not the case?

Dan


----------



## kiny

D Bergy said:


> What surprises me is not the result, but the relatively short time it took to eliminate the bacteria.
> 
> It was my understanding that the MAP bacteria takes years of antibiotic use, to get rid of it.
> 
> Maybe that is not the case?
> 
> Dan


Aye all those other tests say it takes months-years. Maybe he had less, got lucky, I don't know.

There seem to be TB patients where this also happens.

I asked to be MAP tested, but the doc who might let me wasn't in today.


----------



## D Bergy

Will the doctor treat you for the MAP bacteria, if you do have it?

Dan


----------



## kiny

Don't know yet, but they're pretty open about discussing things. They are studying the effects of probiotics also. But it doesn't seem as helpful as first thought because probiotics seems to work only superficially. There's another hospital in Gent and they are a lot less willing to discuss other therapies.


----------



## Igor_Passau

The Company is Preparing Two Parallel Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind Clinical Trials with RHB-104 for the Treatment of Crohn's Disease in Patients who are MAP-Infected (a Phase II/III Trial in the US to be led by Prof. David Graham of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and a European Phase III Trial to be lead by Prof. O'Morain of Meath and Adelaide Hospital, at Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland) and has Recently Announced the Acquisition of Exclusive Rights to a MAP Bacterium Companion Diagnostic Test for RHB-104 

http://www.redhillbio.com/wp-content...r-24-20111.pdf

PR contact Eran Gabay 
VP & Managing Director Financial PR 
Gelbert-Kahana 
+972 (0)54-6787649 
erang@gk-biz.com 
Company contact: 
Adi Frish 
VP Business Development & Licensing 
RedHill Biopharma 
+972 (0)54-6543112 
adi@redhillbio.com


----------



## Igor_Passau

Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis):

2000
http://ec.europa.eu/food/fs/sc/scah/out38_en.pdf 

2007
Is M. avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) the cause of multiple “autoimmune” and “inflammatory” diseases in man? Inferences from the anti-MAP activity of methotrexate, 6-MP, 5-ASA and thalidomide, on MAP in culture.
http://crohn.ie/is-m-avium-subspecie...-and-thalidom/ 

2009 -2010
Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis, Crohn's disease
and the Doomsday Scenario
http://www.communigate.co.uk/sussex/...k/page75.phtml
Wildlife As A Source For Livestock Infections
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/166575.php 

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/193559.php
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/166575.php
http://www.natural-holistic-health.com/crohns-disease-bacteria/

Professor patents test for possible Crohn’s disease cure 

2011:
MAP is present in roughly 50 percent of people who suffer from Crohn's disease and could be a leading cause of the disease.
RedHill Biopharma Ltd. is currently developing an oral drug called RHB-104, which is intended to treat and possibly cure Crohn's patients with MAP bacterium, but without a way to detect MAP, the use of the drug has been limited. Partnered with the UCF Research Foundation, RedHill Biopharma Ltd. is able to use Naser's diagnostic test to detect MAP DNA in the patient's blood and finally allow physicians to prescribe RHB-104 to Crohn's disease patients.

http://www.centralfloridafuture.com...e-crohn-s-disease-cure-1.2646645#.Tu3s9FbaynA


----------



## Igor_Passau

Antimycobacterial Therapy in Crohn’s Disease: Game Over? 

See “Two-year combination antibiotic therapy
with clarithromycin, rifabutin and clofazimine
for Crohn’s disease” by Selby W, Pavli P,
Crotty B, Florin T, Radford-Smith G, Gibson P,
Mitchell B, Connell W, Read R, Merrett M, Ee
H, Hetzel D, on page 2313.

http://download.journals.elsevierhealth.com/pdfs/journals/0016-5085/PIIS0016508507008013.pdf


----------



## Tenacity

D Bergy - I think the reason why it was so quick to see an improvement in the study posted by Kiny, is because the patient was probably not treated with a broad spectrum of antibiotics in the past which would have made him resistant.

I read somewhere that because so many patients take such a broad spectrum and quantity of antibiotics, that you cannot compare the results fairly unless you take this into account.


----------



## wombatgirl

Igor_Passau said:


> Antimycobacterial Therapy in Crohn’s Disease: Game Over?
> 
> See “Two-year combination antibiotic therapy
> with clarithromycin, rifabutin and clofazimine
> for Crohn’s disease” by Selby W, Pavli P,
> Crotty B, Florin T, Radford-Smith G, Gibson P,
> Mitchell B, Connell W, Read R, Merrett M, Ee
> H, Hetzel D, on page 2313.


The reason the Selby study had disappointing results is covered here: thecrohnsinfection.org/clinician-information/. The really interesting thing is that, despite all the problems with it, when you compare the treatments properly (as discussed on this site) anti-map abx were actually more effective than other standard treatments.

And that site and others also mention the problem of single use of those anti-map abx in the past causing the MAP to become resistant.

Incidentally, you can get tested for MAP at Otakaro Pathways in NZ (you courier your blood sample over). That is where I was tested (it was positive). I cannot personally comment on the abx yet as I am waiting on my GI doc to see if she will prescribe them.


----------

