Clinical Presentation of Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth from Aerodigestive Tract Bacteria Versus Colonic-Type Bacteria: A Comparison Study

BackgroundSmall Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) is a heterogenous syndrome from excessive bacteria in the small intestine lumen. It is unknown if differences in type of bacterial overgrowth lead to differences in symptoms.MethodsPatients with suspected SIBO were recruited prospectively. Exclusion criteria were probiotics, antibiotics, or bowel prep in preceding 30 days. Clinical characteristics, risk factors, and labs were collected. Proximal jejunal aspiration via upper enteroscopy was performed. Aerodigestive tract (ADT) SIBO was defined as > 10(5) CFU/mL of oropharyngeal and respiratory bacteria. Colonic-type SIBO was defined as > 10(4) CFU/mL of distal small bowel and colon bacteria. Aims were to compare symptom profiles, clinical complications, labs, and underlying risk factors between ADT and colonic-type SIBO.Key ResultsWe consented 166 subjects. Aspiration was not obtained in 22 and SIBO was found in 69 (49%) of 144 subjects. Daily abdominal distention trended towards more prevalent in ADT SIBO versus colonic-type SIBO (65.2% vs 39.1%, p = 0.09). Patient symptom scores were similar. Iron deficiency was more prevalent in ADT SIBO (33.3% vs 10.3%, p = 0.04). Subjects with colonic-type SIBO were more likely to have a risk factor for colonic bacteria colonization (60.9% vs 17.4%, p = 0.0006). Subjects with ADT SIBO were more likely to have a risk factor for diminished gastric acid (91.3% vs 67.4%, p = 0.02). Conclusions & Inferences: We found differences in iron deficiency and underlying risk factors between ADT and colonic-type SIBO. However, distinct clinical profiles remained elusive. Future research is needed to develop validated symptom assessment tools and distinguish cause from correlation.

Automated summary

This study investigated whether different types of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) lead to different symptoms. The study found that overgrowth of bacteria in the oropharyngeal and respiratory tract was more associated with abdominal distention, while overgrowth of bacteria in the distal small bowel and colon was more associated with iron deficiency.