DIARRHEA can be defined as three or more times a day, more volume, watery and shapeless defecation. According to the causes of DIARRHEA, infectious (viral, bacterial), parasitic (giardi, etc.) and osmotic diarrhea (hyperthyroidism, etc.) are evaluated under the headings. DIARRHEA is called acute and chronic diarrhea according to its duration. ACUTE DIARRHEA describes cases that persist for up to 3 weeks. If diarrhea persists for 3 weeks or longer, it is called CHRONIC DIARRHEA.
INFECTIOUS and PARASITIC DIARRHEA are the most common causes of diarrhea. Except for these, in hormanal disorders (hyperthyroidism, etc.), radiotherapy, chemotherapy, food allergies, food poisoning, IBS ( Irritable Bowel Syndrome), Ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s Disease, Celiac Disease, Lactose intolerance, Diabetes, some cancers (glucagonoma, unsilinoma, adrenal tumors, etc.), excessive alcohol consumption, drug addiction, enzymatic digestive disorders, genetic enzymatic diseases, pancreatic diseases, intestinal surgeries are also the main causes of DIARRHEA.
The vast majority of ACUTE DIARRHEA is caused by infectious and parasitic. But all of the above-mentioned causes can also cause CHRONIC DIARRHEA.
In all cases of diarrhea, deficiencies of all nutrients absorbed from the intestines (minerals, vitamins, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, etc.) are found.). October diarrhea-related absorption disorders are tolerable except in some cases in acute diarrhea and do not require additional treatment except fluid. In cases of acute diarrhea, such as cholera, serious mineral and fluid deficits may be life-threatening if not supported by treatment. But because CHRONIC DIARRHEA lasts much longer, developmental delays and permanent damage occur, especially in children. Because it will be very difficult to perform long-term travel and activities in chronic diarrhea, social isolation, depression, failures in school and business life are often observed along with it.
Diarrhea, for whatever reason, causes temporary or permanent damage to the entire digestive tract FLORA, especially the intestines. In cases of CHRONIC DIARRHEA, even if the flora damage resolves on its own, it can never access the microbial flora richness before diarrhea again. The duration, severity of CHRONIC DIARRHEA and associated additional diseases (diabetes, stopping oral nutrition, intensive antibiotic and steroid treatments, etc. Oct.) depending on it, it is impossible not to have damage to the flora of the digestive system. However, some of the damage caused may improve spontaneously to a level that can sustain life.
In case of damage to the flora of the digestive tract, that is, a decrease in microbial biodiversity, it will not be possible to treat diarrhea, even if the underlying cause of chronic diarrhea is eliminated.
Digestive, enzymatic, defense against microbial attacks, moisture, acidity, nerve conduction, intestinal motility, stool formation, etc., which have their own special functions in each region throughout the entire digestive system from the mouth to the anus, do not harm us, even have vital importance for us. we live together with thousands of different kinds of single-celled living species that have many more functions. Although our digestive system microbiota is thousands in biodiversity, we live peacefully together with the world of micro-creatures, which are numerically trillions, repeating themselves several times in a day. All of these are called the FLORA OF THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM (Microbiota). Most of these micro-creatures in our digestive system are composed of bacteria, viruses and yeasts. There are more than 1000 types of bacteria that have been identified to date throughout our entire digestive system. The more variety of flora bacteria we can host in our digestive system, the healthier, happier, peaceful, disease-free and long-lasting we will live. There is a direct relationship between the biodiversity of the digestive system flora and long life. Dec. While biodiversity decreases as you go to metropolitan areas and industrial areas, it increases as you go to rural areas. However, the use of agricultural chemicals in rural areas is the most important factor that reduces biodiversity. The weaker the biodiversity of the digestive system flora, the more acute and chronic diarrhea is observed. Especially infectious and parasitic diarrhea is observed in people with limited flora biodiversity. Our flora is the most important defense mechanism that protects us against external microbial attacks.
The damage caused to the flora biodiversity along with CHRONIC DIARRHEA prepares the ground for the formation of ‘Permeable Bowel Syndrome’. Our intestines have a selective permeable property. The most important triggering factor in the degradation of the selective permeable property is FLORA DAMAGE. After Leaky Gut Syndrome occurs, an increasing number of AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES begin to occur (Rheumatoid Arthritis, GOUT Disease, Psoriasis, Vitiligo, Rose Disease, Behcet’s Disease, Autoimmune Vasculitis, Autoimmune Arthritis, Hashimoto’s Disease, Ovarian Cyst, Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue, Depression, IBS, Food Allergies, Gluten Intolerance, Lactose Intolerance, etc.). After the formation of Permeable Bowel Syndrome, it is impossible to improve the picture without flora transplantation.
The most critical threshold in the emergence of CHRONIC DIARRHEA causes such as IBS, Celiac Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, food allergies and Crohn’s Disease is again the damage caused to the flora. Near the end of these cases, one or more of the causes that weaken the flora are observed before the disease occurs (intensive antibiotic therapy, steroid therapy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, stopping oral nutrition, major surgical procedures, intensive care treatments or a serious infection that has been passed, etc.) For whatever reason, it is not possible to permanently treat chronic diarrhea in all diseases that are the cause or result of CHRONIC DIARRHEA without making the digestive system flora healthy again. In CHRONIC DIARRHEA, if our flora cannot return to health on its own or within 6 months despite all the treatments, it is necessary to restore the flora of the digestive system by transplanting the FLORA.
FLORA TRANSPLANTATION is the process of transferring flora samples taken from at least one healthy donor with high biodiversity, under general anesthesia, endoscopically and colonoscopically from 25-45 separate anatomical areas, each area washed with special solutions, after undergoing a number of procedures, endoscopically and colonoscopically to the equivalent anatomical area of the sick person, under general anesthesia.
It is not possible to treat CHRONIC DIARRHEA cases without restoring healthy flora.
We have turned our experience and clinical experiences related to Flora Transplantation into an article and published it in the American medical journal CUREUS. You can access the article from the link below
Wishing you healthy days
MD, Murat KANLIÖZ
General Surgery Specialist