Antibiotic Therapy Crohn's

[Mazen]

http://www.all-creatures.org/health/crohns2005.html

Dr. Ira Shafran's recently presented paper at the annual meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology will one day re-write what is taught in medical schools. Sadly, new and exciting medical knowledge is often slow to work its way through the healthcare system. Shafran now treats his Crohn's patients for 16 weeks with an oral antibiotic called xifaximin (also known as rifaximinin). Past treatments have included different antibiotics administered intravenously.

In Dr. Shafran's most recent study and soon-to-be published journal article, twenty-one of twenty-nine patients were in complete remission after only 15 weeks of his 16-week study.

I asked Dr. Shafran what is being done for the other eight patients. They continue to be treated with low doses of anti-inflammatory drugs in combination with pro-biotics. Dr. Shafran's website: http://www.shafran.net

Has anyone tried Rifaximinin? Sometimes when I have a flare my doctor prescribes a 10 day course of antibiotics Cipro and Flagyl, and I usually feel much better after it; so I'm womdering if a 16 week course of the above antibiotic would be better???:confused2:

 

[soupdragon69]

Hi Mazen,

Havent tried Rifaximinin myself. The site is interesting reading.

See they also discuss Clarithromycin and something else together too as another treatment option. I know Clarithro has been used for its anti inflammatory properties as my asthma and GI cons both wanted me on it at different times and I couldnt have it as I come out in hives (yuck).

Very intrigued to see if anyone else has come across Rifax treatment.

 

[dad_01]

Here's a rifaxamin article I had come across, from a study by cornell, on animals:

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/24693.php

This second article is about a doctor who uses a breath test to try to diagnose an overgrowth of bacteria related to IBS, which he then treats with antibiotics:

http://mednews.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/5509.html

 

[FruitLoop]

Well I have been on numerous courses of Metronidazole - (Flagyl in US) and they have never done anything !!

I had a 3 month course before my re-section and 4 weeks after it.

I am currently on an 8 week course - all it does is make me feel sick and ruin my social life as you 100% cannot drink alcohol at all whilst taking it.

Interesting that they have found one that does work though.

 

[Kev]

Hey, learn something new everyday.. I was on metronidizole (sp?) Never knew it was flagyl (much easier to spell). Heres the scoop. It didn't do anything for me.. in fact, I got worse. Docs took me off it just to be safe. Thing of it was I felt like I'd let them down... That's when they told me it only works about 20% of the time. Pretty crummy odds

 

[BWS1982]

Well I have been on numerous courses of Metronidazole - (Flagyl in US) and they have never done anything !!

I had a 3 month course before my re-section and 4 weeks after it.

I am currently on an 8 week course - all it does is make me feel sick and ruin my social life as you 100% cannot drink alcohol at all whilst taking it.

Interesting that they have found one that does work though.

Metronidazole is the generic, Flagyl is a brand name. We have both here.

And you don't need to drink to have a social life Fruit, I have never had a drink of an alcoholic beverage (except a few sips of beer as a child) and I have many friends. I have Potty, good ol' TP, and I can't forget Prep H to the Izzo.....................in all seriousness, I am always a lively addition to get-togethers and never consume said beverages.

 

[Jeff D.]

Yeah flagyl does nothing for me. I never got any better until I started taking Levaquin. Now I'm fine.

 

[Rosemarie]

I was on Flagyl and Cipro regularly for over 2 years... I was instructed to take them everyday but I tended to lay off them when I knew I didnt need them 24/7. If I felt a flare coming I'd start them again full force. I did that mostly because I figured out quickly that they loose thier effects if taken for to long/to often. I eventually let the script run out (after moving, getting new docs, and being in remission for almost a year). I figured since I wasnt very sick and things were healing nicely without the antibiodics, why take them anyway?

For those of you who didnt know... Flagyl (for some of us- mostly women I think) has the side effect of lowering your fertility! Little did I know untill a few months after being off it entirely- I got pregnant! Hubby and I had been trying for a long time (during remission of course) with no results. After I stopped taking flagyl -and cipro, u never really know, could have been the combination of both- I was suddenly fertile again. HMMM....??? They never mentioned THAT at the hospital.

 

[FruitLoop]

Metronidazole is the generic, Flagyl is a brand name. We have both here.

And you don't need to drink to have a social life Fruit, I have never had a drink of an alcoholic beverage (except a few sips of beer as a child) and I have many friends. I have Potty, good ol' TP, and I can't forget Prep H to the Izzo.....................in all seriousness, I am always a lively addition to get-togethers and never consume said beverages.

In all honesty I very rarely drink - it's actually the Crohn's ruining my social life at the moment !! However I find it hard to be told *never* to drink alcohol- so when my girl friend nips round we will have a glass of wine and a natter - now we are drinking tea ! Last weekend was my dad's 60th and we had champagne - i had to stop the tablets for 3 days to be able to join him.

 

[BWS1982]

Sorry, what's "nip" and "natter"?

I hear you clearly on the Crohns and social life. Who wants to head off to a party in a Depends?

 

[jed]

Nips around = comes around, drops in, has a visit
natter = females chatting endlessly for hours about boys and shopping, usually ends in a pillow fight in their underwear

 

[BWS1982]

ahhhh. Okay.

 

[Isla]

natter = females chatting endlessly for hours about boys and shopping, usually ends in a pillow fight in their underwear

o0o0 I want to go to one of those! Though I would rather talk about movies, comic books, video games, or computers. In fact skip the chatter, can I just play my Wii in my under-roos?

 

[jed]

o0o0 I want to go to one of those! Though I would rather talk about movies, comic books, video games, or computers. In fact skip the chatter, can I just play my Wii in my under-roos?

quick, its one of the cool chicks that likes silly things!
tie her up so she cant get away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Jeff D.]

Wow from antibiotics to pillow fights.lol

 

[jed]

yup, this is a pretty bad HiJacking, sorry to the OP

 

[Jeff D.]

Yeah but thats whats great about this forum. We like going off topic.lol

 

[BWS1982]

We just shoot the shit Jeff, how's that off topic?

:ycool:

 

[Isla]

Antibiotics have EVERYthing to do with pillows Like in the ICU they will adjust your pillow while on antibiotics. Not to mention the fact some pillows are antimicrobial and if you sleep with down pillows - the geese could have been given antibiotics.

See it COULD correlate to the topic ...

 

[Guest]

Nips around = comes around, drops in, has a visit
natter = females chatting endlessly for hours about boys and shopping, usually ends in a pillow fight in their underwear

hehe nearly all the essential knowledge about men i ever learned, was during the many girlie nights in i used to have at my house. women are wicked when they get together - its not all swapping recipes and knitting patterns, by any means

 

[Colt]

I found flagyl to make me a lot sicker while I was taking it and a lot better afterward. I'd take it for a week and be good for a month or so.

Flagyl is the standard treatment for pseudo colitis (C. Diff) by the way. Many cases of crohn's may actually be C. Diff which runs rampant in nursing homes.

 

[BWS1982]

hehe nearly all the essential knowledge about men i ever learned, was during the many girlie nights in i used to have at my house. women are wicked when they get together - its not all swapping recipes and knitting patterns, by any means

Not so fast. Not all men fall into a cookie cutter "sex, food, beer" template.....some were blessed with personalities, wit, and charm. :tongue:

 

[Raised_Fistula]

My GI recently gave me some samples of rifaximin and prescribed it, but "shockingly" my insurance :clown: refused to pay for it! Apparently rifaximin is only approved to treat "traveler's diarrhea." I haven't taken the six sample pills - a two day supply - because it seemed pointless. It sounds promising, though, considering that the antibiotic specifically targets bad bacteria in the intestines.

 

[Isla]

How much is it without insurance? And you can contact the company directly and apply for low-income support (if you are in their bracket for assistance.) It may be worth the effort if it will really help you.

 

[Raised_Fistula]

How much is it without insurance? And you can contact the company directly and apply for low-income support (if you are in their bracket for assistance.) It may be worth the effort if it will really help you.

Thanks for the suggestion, Isla My understanding is it would cost about $320 per month = around $4000 per year. Will it really help me? Who knows?! That's one of the insidious things about this disease: you never quite know if a medication is working/will work because your body may just decide to go into remission by itself, which has happened for years at a time in my case.