Blasto Treatment - CDD or Nitazoxanide or anything else?

[satwikc]

Hello everyone,

I am Steve from Adelaide and I have been diagnosed with Blastocystis Hominis back in February 2015.

For last many months, I was on probiotics however it didn't help.

I have been reading much about Triple drug therapy from CDD and it seems like it can eradicate this parasite but leaves with with lot many years to even recover and sometimes may give you ongoing health issues.

I have read many people who have taken CDD drugs are still sick with other infections as the drugs are too strong.

I am 34 years guy who used to be very healthy but it has gone worse after this parasite came into my body.

I really like to know people's experiences with CDD and their health afterwards.

Alternatively, I was also told that Nitazoxanide for 30 days may cure these bugs completely without much side effects/long term gut system issues.

Can some of you please share your experiences.

thanks

 

[Hip]

You might find the list of Blastocystis hominis treatment protocols detailed in this post answers your questions.

 

[Hutan]

Hi @satwikc
There are different strains of Blastocystis, I believe sufficiently different to be different species and perhaps even different genera. Some strains of Blastocystis do not seem to be pathogenic and perhaps may even be protective. Large percentages of healthy populations have Blastocystis. Some strains are commonly associated with gastro issues but some people are asymptomatic with them.

So it's not necessarily as simple as just blasting the Blasto out. Blastocystis may not be the cause of your problems and teh treatment may cause more harm than good. Do search this forum for discussions on Blasto. If it is possible, it would be worth trying to pin down what strain of Blasto you have. I think Bioscreen in Melbourne may do this.

That said, when you actually find something that perhaps is causing your symptoms, I entirely understand the urge to get rid of it. I was treated with paromomycin for a range of intestinal parasites. I did feel better after it but I suspect that the treatment coincided with an improvement that was just the natural course of the illness (ie initially worse then gradual improvement to a plateau).

 

[satwikc]

Hi Hutan,

Thanks and so far I have had 1 stool testing proving b. hominis in my body.

I never had any issue with my digestive system and weight loss and I know it's because of this. I have experienced most other symptoms as well from this blasto in last 6 months.

I took metronidazole for 3 days and it was worsening the symptoms so had to stop it (prescribed by my GP).

I am yet to see my gastrologist end of this month and really confused and stressed with what to do by reading all sort of information on internet.

 

[Hutan]

Hi Hutan,

Thanks and so far I have had 1 stool testing proving b. hominis in my body..

Although 'Blastocystis hominis' sounds like it is a well defined species, the name actually covers a range of organisms that are quite different genetically. The hominis bit just means 'found in people'. As more work is done, no doubt the various species will be separated out. So, if you can better define what strain of Blastocystis hominis you have, that will strengthen or weaken your hypothesis that the blasto is the cause of your illness.

The fact that you have blasto indicates that you have probably been exposed to other water-borne pathogens that may possibly be causing the problem. Many of the tests used aren't very successful in identifying significant pathogens. I think it's a good idea to have a few stool tests to increase the chance of finding things and later to confirm that a pathogen has been eliminated.

My family and I were treated with metronidazole - it didn't clear the blasto.

Good luck with your treatments; I hope you are feeling better soon.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Hi @satwikc I was diagnosed with blasto about 8-9 years ago and saw Dr Borody at the CDD in Sydney. I needed two courses of a triple antibiotic combo (secnidazole, furazolidone, and nitazoxanide) to get rid of it. The antibiotics weren't particularly pleasant and I felt pretty ill while I was on them, however my IBS symptoms (including 4-5 bouts of diarrhoea per day) got considerably better after getting rid of the blasto. However, it did not alleviate any other of my ME/CFS symptoms.

I believe that the CDD now has other treatment options for blasto which might be easier on the body.

Best of luck.

 

[satwikc]

Hi @Art Vandelay , thanks for writing and see you are from Adelaide too.

I am bit concerned about after effects of this triple therapy and impact on the bowel flora.

Can you please advise your overall health after taking this treatment?

Did you show negative in stool test after taking this treatment in past 8 years?

Really appreciate your time and efforts.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Hi @satwikc no worries, being in Adelaide isn't great when you have confusing medical issues!

I didn't have any tests performed on my bowel flora prior to having the antibiotics or afterwards, so I can't say what sort of effect the antibiotics had on my bowel flora with any certainty.

All I can say is that many of my gastrointestinal symptoms were better (or gone) after the blasto was eradicated. Unfortunately it didn't fix my ME/CFS so, while my health improved after treatment, I am still ill with ME/CFS.

When my GP first found that I had blasto, I tried flagyl, metronidazole, and finally, metronidazole combined with bactrim. None of these antibiotics worked and Dr Borody told me that they made the blasto more resistant to antibiotics and thus more difficult to treat.

My stool tests since the second triple antibiotic treatment have been clear for blasto ever since.

However, I have recently tested positive for another parasite, D.fragilis (although I am perhaps lucky that I don't seem to be negatively affected by it).

Hope this helps. You might have already seen this site for more info on blasto: http://www.badbugs.org/