Fecal transplants are safe and effective treatments for recurrent Clostridioides difficile infections in children, according to a clinical report released Monday by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
However, fecal microbiota transplants (FMTs) should not be used to treat other gastrointestinal ailments such as Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis because scientific evidence falls short on effectiveness in treating these conditions, the group said.
C difficile infections (CDIs) are major contributors to hospital-associated diarrhea and diarrhea caused by antibiotics. An FMT involves introducing the feces of a healthy person into the gastrointestinal tract, usually through a nasogastric tube but sometimes in capsules containing healthy stool. Serious adverse reactions associated with an FMT, such as hospitalization, are rare, occurring in roughly 2% of cases, the AAP said.
An FMT, "does have a place for treatment of recurrent CDIs in children," said Maria Oliva-Hemker, MD, a pediatric gastroenterologist at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore and the lead author of the report, which was published in the December 2023 volume of Pediatrics.
The AAP strongly encourages people not to perform an FMT at home, although caregivers may be tempted due to a lack of medical facilities located nearby to deliver this care.
