A new diagnostic test for IBS-D, called IBS Smart, provides even more evidence that in many cases, IBS-D results from an autoimmune reaction to food poisoning.
A similar test, called IBSchek, has been on the market for several years. That test detected the presence of the biomarkers anti-vinculin and anti-CDTB in patients with diarrhea-predominant IBS symptoms. IBSchek, a simple blood test, was developed by Dr. Mark Pimentel and his team at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Dr. Pimentel is widely considered one of the top experts in SIBO and IBS.
The biotechnology company that developed the IBS Smart test calls it a second-generation version of IBSchek. The biotechnology company worked in cooperation with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to develop the test.
In order to validate the IBS Smart test, Cedars-Sinai ran a 2,500-patient study that validated the presence of two biomarkers, anti-vinculin and anti-CdtB, as indicative of IBS. Specifically, anti-vinculin and anti-CDTB indicate that an autoimmune reaction to food poisoning caused the patient’s IBS. The company that developed the test claims it has a diagnostic accuracy of 98%, which seems impressive to me.
When I first started having gastrointestinal problems ten years ago, a diagnostic test for IBS didn’t exist. Instead, I spent over a year going to various doctors and having expensive lab work done. I can’t count how many times my doctor tested me for parasites, celiac, and so on. I even had an endoscopy (an invasive procedure sort of like a colonoscopy) done, which was very unpleasant.
It would have been so helpful to have a highly predictive test like IBS Smart available ten years ago when I got sick, so I could have avoided spending so much money and time on various tests and doctors. I could have instead started treating it smarter and faster instead of wondering what on earth had happened to me. Although I’m doing better now, it took a VERY long time to get there. I spent years not knowing what caused my problems or how to approach them.
Progress like this new test give me hope. It’s positive that research continues to develop in this area, which affects so many people on a daily basis. And it’s a huge benefit to patients to know what they have, what caused it, and avoid expensive testing if possible. Plus, once you know the cause, you can try and treat it more effectively and hopefully avoid developing SIBO.
Thanks for the post. Have you completely eradicated SIBO? Last you mentioned, you only did 1 course of antibiotics but still had some symptoms. If your doc doesn’t want to test again then you can buy a home breath test kit from here https://www.truehealthlabs.com/searchresults.asp?Submit=Go&Search=3+hour+lactulose. You won’t need a doctors Rx for this. After you are done you mail it off and results are emailed to you in a week. If positive you can take it to your doc and ask for another round of antibiotics. I’ve used this lab twice. I got my Sibo from PPI usage so mine was pretty easy to eliminate with 2 rounds of rifaximin/neomycin and especially since I only had SIBO for 1 year before I was able to get rid of it. I have read that the longer you have it the more damage it does to your intestines to the point that you may never really be able to get rid of it. My results went from 28 on hydrogen 13 on methane then after 1st round it was 12 on hydrogen and 8 on methane and finally 7 on hydrogen and 3 on methane. To be considered free of SIBO the total score needs to be between 15-20 or less and methane needs to be 3 or below. I’ve been on ginger as a Prokinetic for 3 months now and feel great but I won’t be in the clear until the 1yr mark. I hope you are doing well.
I have IBS-C!!! CONSTIPATION—PLEASE DR.PIMMENTEL-WHY EVERY EFFORT TEST ETC.IS ONLY FOR IBS-D ??!! I AM AN M.D.LIVING IN ISRAEL-THEY ONLY MESSURE THE HYDROGEN HERE NOT THE METHAN SO MY BREATH TEST CAME NEGATIVE OF CAUSE…ALSO I AM TO DAY A CONCERT PIANIST -NEOMICIN IS OTOTOXIC AND CAN CAUSE NEUROSENSORIAL HEARING LOSS SO IT IS A NO NO FOR ME I AM DESPERATE WHAT SHOULD I DO??
Hi Nira, sorry to hear you are struggling with this. One thing you might want to research is taking herbal antibiotics instead of Neomycin if you’re concerned about possible side effects from Neomycin. I have a blog post about herbal antibiotics, click here for the link to that post. In particular check out the information on taking Allimed for constipation. This form of garlic has clinical research showing its efficacy on IBS/SIBO. Read the post about it and I hope it helps you!
I just tested positive for this test and am so relieved to have an answer as to why SIBO happened to me! I didn’t think I’d test positive for the antibodies. It’s been so long since I’ve had SIBO, and I didn’t have an obvious triggering event that I’ll never forget like you did. I think that’s a lot of people’s situation. If a person has SIBO and doesn’t already know of an obvious underlying cause, this test is worth doing.
Hi Mallory – just to understand – what did the test change in terms of your treatment plan? I have not found anything on what happens when the test comes back positive. You knew you had SIBO, so was it necessary to know that it was related to food poisoning?
Emily – what did it change for you to know that your IBS was caused by food poising? After all, you too already knew you had SIBO? Thank you both so much!!!
Hi Alice, for me, I now know that my body has an autoimmune reaction to food poisoning, almost certainly caused by e.coli. This is helpful because, as I talk about in my post about food poisoning, I now know that it’s absolutely critical that I try and avoid further food poisoning, as it will cause the same autoimmune reaction and possibly damage my gut further. And I know that if I do get food poisoning, I need to get antibiotics right away and try and do all that I can to stimulate my migrating motor complex. If I know that my SIBO wasn’t caused by food poisoning, then I would know to keep trying to search for what the cause of SIBO was, in hopes that it’s something I could correct. Hope that helps!
I have ordered this test. Hoping Quest will do the blood draw. Yes, I’m pretty sure of SIBO-IBS. 40 years of diarrhea and no gall bladder. No way of controlling the diarrhea except scads of supplements and avoiding all kinds of foods. Also diabetic. When it rains, it pours. So what is the treatment except for the herbs you mentioned which also cause diarrhea. My insurance will not cover rifaximin and does it even work with IBS-D?
Hi Paula, so sorry to hear you have been struggling that long! It sounds really dreadful. Rifaximin works with both diarrhea and constipation in many cases, although with constipation it appears to work best when taken with Neomycin. There is some evidence for herbal protocols as well, but those can be just as expensive, longer, and tend to kill all the bacteria as opposed to Rifaximin which is targeted more specifically to just the small intestine. Have you tried appealing your insurance decision? I know some folks also purchase Rifaximin from Canadian pharmacies online, which is MUCH cheaper (I believe around $200 for a course of it).
Thanks for your comments. I’ve received the results from the IBS-SMART test. No indications from the CdtP or 0. The Vinculin results were 3.+. What exactly does this mean? No one seems to be able to tell me.My doc, an alternative guy never heard of Vinculin. Is this SIBO, IBS, or what?