Mr. T and his family have been suffering from autism spectrum disorder such as constipation, picky eating, and difficulty with group activities.
She had difficulty defecating, a tendency to constipation, and did not participate in group activities depending on her mood, among other symptoms.

We asked Mr. T’s family about the changes after the intestinal flora transplant and what they noticed during the hospital visit.

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Boy
Name of disease: Autism spectrum disorder
Transplant period: May 15, 2023 – June 19, 2023　
Transplant course: 6 transplants
Transplant attending physician: Luke’s Ashiya Clinic
Post-transplant diagnosis: Moderate improvement of symptoms

Q1. Three months have passed since your child underwent a total of six intestinal microbiota transplants (hereinafter referred to as FMT), how is your child doing?

He seems to be in very good shape. I feel very stable, especially in the mental aspect, and I feel calmer than before. Sometimes I have bad days, but I think that is normal for a first grader.

The “I can’t stand trivial things” attitude of the past is no longer present. In fact, I can see that he is willing to tackle even the things that he is not good at or that he does not like. I really feel that he has grown up much faster.

Q2. What specific changes did you notice in your child’s bowel movements?

I am feeling a big change. I used to have to hold it in for 4 or 5 days, but now I have a bowel movement every other day or so. At the most, if I don’t have a bowel movement for three days, I feel as if I am in pain.

The fact that he is now able to defecate in the toilet on his own is really a big change.

Q3.Did you notice any issues or challenges with your child’s condition or responses during the hospital visit for FMT? Also, please tell us about any feelings you had during the process of getting used to the hospital visit.

At first she was not used to it and resisted, but along the way she felt herself getting better. Right before the procedure, he was a little reluctant, but he was positive about going. He would say things like, “I’m going to the hospital tomorrow,” so we didn’t have to make any arrangements for him to go to the hospital. He was also very cooperative when the nurses checked his vitals, and he got more and more used to it. In that sense, I felt comfortable watching them.

However, because of his tendency to be hyperactive, he sometimes tried to enter the examination room despite the presence of other patients, and I sometimes felt sorry for him.

Q4. What do you think needs to be done to better inform the public about intestinal flora transplantation?

I think that experts can understand the mechanism if they see it, but for the general public, there are many questions like ‘what on earth is this? I thought that if there were more easy-to-understand explanations and explanations that the general public could understand, such as ‘this is what happens when you do this,’ they would feel more comfortable choosing FMT.