SIBO - Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth

V.R.T.

V.R.T.

Senior Member (Voting Rights)
I was diagnosed with SIBO last year. For complex reasons inc. the specialist who diagnosed me pushing loads of alt med treatments on me and the GPs refusing to prescribe the correct antibiotic I have not started treatment yet. My GI symptoms are bad. I will spare you all the details!

How solid is the science behind SIBO? From looking online it seems to be one of those things that's tricky to get rid of.
 
My impression has been that a definite diagnosis is hard to be sure of except perhaps where there are specific structural problems like post-surgical loops and scleroderma. Wkikpedia says:

Nevertheless, as of 2020, the definition of SIBO as a clinical entity lacks precision and consistency; it is a term generally applied to a clinical disorder where symptoms, clinical signs, and/or laboratory abnormalities are attributed to changes in the numbers of bacteria or the composition of the bacterial population in the small intestine. The main obstacle to accurately defining SIBO is limited understanding of the normal intestinal microbial population. Future advances in sampling technology and techniques for counting bacterial populations and their metabolites should provide much-needed clarity.

A jejunal aspirate result may be reasonably clear cut but there seem to be concerns over the interpretation of breath tests. A lot may depend on the physician making the diagnosis.
 
In the US it’s the most recent trend being pushed by alt med practitioners for any GI issues. Some cases may be real but when I looked into it for a friend who got diagnosed with it, the impression I got was that the test is definitely not precise. There might be some evidence of things working for people that have the real deal confirmed by the aspirate, but for the rest I have a feeling it’s mostly “practitioner experience.”
 
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