Are you someone or know of someone that has developed diarrhea with urgency and frequency since your colonoscopy? Don’t blame the colonoscopy prep! It was likely because the scope they used for your procedure wasn’t disinfected well. Gross, I know!! But clinically, I have been observing strains of Enterobacter cloacae, Escherichia coli, and Klebsiella pneumonia in stool sample testing on patients that have developed digestive issues since their procedures and have been baffled to see these strains come up as pathogenic.
Taking it a step further I looked into the research and wouldn’t you know it, there are multiple published journal articles on this exact topic! For instance, In the journal GUT published Sept 2018 a study showed 15% of duodenoscopes still contained microorganisms of gastro or oral origin after being disinfected. Meaning, they still contained matter from previous patients, YUCK! A number of factors influence why they haven’t found a sterilization technique that is 100% effective, scope design, biofilm formations, and risk of scope damaging to name a few.
As a naturopathic doctor, I have developed protocols for my patients to do prior to their scheduled routine colonoscopy as preventative and then after their colonoscopy procedure to ensure these bacteria will not proliferate in case they were of the percentage that obtained an infected scope.
Here is the link to the study I have talked about in this article if you’d like more information.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29636382
About the author
Since 2005, Dr Fey has helped thousands of women, men, and children find real solutions to their health concerns. She truly believe that giving the proper care and nutrients your body has an amazing ability to heal. She is committed to finding the root cause of illness by utilizing a whole body approach not just focusing solely on presenting symptoms.
Dr. Amanda Fey is the owner and practicing Naturopathic Doctor at Complementary Medicine & Healing Arts, the Southern Tiers Center For Natural Healthcare located in the Binghamton NY area. The office website is www.naturallywell.us. Her personal website is www.doctorfey.com. To contact the office call 607-729-0591 or email cmhahealth@gmail.com.