I'm about to start a few weeks of oral vancomycin, to treat an on-going GI dysbiosis issue - I have an overgrowth of bad bacteria in the gut.
Has anyone used oral vancomycin, which I think is supposed to stay in the intestines (as opposed to IV)?
Any advice or cautions?
Thanks for any thoughts on this, Cactus
Posted by steven (Member # 13101) on :
Hi,
I havent tried vanco yet, but its on my list as one of the things to try next. my llmd suggested to try it - although its expensive, I guess.
So, Im looking forward to hear about your experience! which will be great, I hope! Steven
Posted by cactus (Member # 7347) on :
I'll keep you posted, then.
It is expensive, that's for sure!
Posted by trueblue (Member # 7348) on :
Cactus, I hope it works well for you. My understanding is it stays in the intestines and is not absorbed; so just works there. (I might be wrong on that.)
Do a search on C. diff and you should come up with a bunch of threads. (I understand that this is probably different but the treatment might be exactly the same.)
IV vanco doesn't get into the gut but works systemically. While I have used this, I would consider it the drug of last resort primarily so I won't develop a resistant bug.
Interestingly, IV vanco can be swallowed (nasty tasting but is cheaper than the pills) -- b/c the route of delivery is oral, it stays in the gut.
Did whomever is prescribing this for you check to be sure that your bug is susceptible to vanco? Otherwise its an expensive experiment!
Posted by timaca (Member # 6911) on :
I was on oral vanco for 11 months due to ongoing C. diff problems.
Do what was suggested by duramater (hi duramater!)...try the liquid vanco. They can flavor it (it will still taste bad but better than if they don't flavor it). The liquid form is about 1/10th the cost of the pill form.
Timaca
Posted by BorreliaBrain (Member # 7603) on :
may I ask, if it isn't too too um, graphic... how was your gut dysbiosis issue diagnosed? was there a test for it? is is just based on symptoms? did they mention SIBO too you (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth?).
I'm really curious, because I think I have some issues with this, but am not really sure. I realize there's one very obvious symptom for c.diff, but I wonder if there's different sx for gut dysbiosis?
Thanks for any info.
BB
Posted by cactus (Member # 7347) on :
Thanks, True, I will search for the c. diff threads - great idea!
Durameter & Timaca - very cool advice about the liquid. What a good way to get the same med without the cost.
Yes, as far as I know, my particular bugs are susceptible to vanco, but I'm still nervous about taking it because it's always listed as a drug of last resort.
Borrelia, it's graphic, but I don't mind if you don't... My main symptoms have been diarrhea and pain - really bad abdominal and pelvic pain. There might be other symptoms, if you search for it, there are a few of us here with this issue.
Mine flares up and settles back down every so often, so over the years I've had tons of GI work ups, without finding the cause.
This past summer alone they've done upper GI series w/ small bowel follow through, endoscopy with biopsies (for bart, Lyme, mycoplasma), capsule gastroscopy, stool cultures (multiple) and tons of bloodwork. My bloodwork shows gut inflammation and antibodies usually present in Crohn's Disease, but all the other conventional tests have been fairly normal.
Finally got diagnosed using the GI Health Panel at Diagnos-Techs. Another stool culture, but they picked up stuff the other labs didn't. If you want more their info, I can pm it to you and you can show it to your LLMD.
Thanks, everyone, for the input on vanco...
Posted by timaca (Member # 6911) on :
I should also state that not every pharmacy can make compounded prescriptions. You might need a hospital pharmacy to do this.
Timaca
Posted by WildCondor (Member # 434) on :
Hey!
Yes, oral Vancomycin is NOT used for Lyme disease treatment. It is used for GI problems such as c.difficile. IV Vancomycin DOES work for Lyme. SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth) is treated with Xifaxan and or/neomycin. Neither of those are absorbed into the blood either.
Dysbiosis can be treated with better drugs than oral vancomycin, do you have a good GI? Have you done a Genova diagnostics CDSA test? www.gdx.net
Good luck!
Posted by duramater (Member # 6480) on :
If you are taking it orally, no worries about the "drug of last resort" issue (or many fewer worries). Its the IV vanco to which this refers.
But, its not the most benign of drugs (not that its terrible), so be sure they did a susceptibility test first.
Good luck, and I hope you feel better.
Posted by cactus (Member # 7347) on :
Hey WC - I have a scheduled consult with a doc who does a lot of work with dysbiosis, and it sounds like I need to keep it.
Just finished up 2 weeks on Xifaxan, glad to hear that's a good one for this issue.
Thanks for the link, too, I haven't had that test.
And many thank yous, durameter, for the info that when used orally vanco is not quite as last resort. That makes me feel much more comfortable.
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