Nanobug, this area of IBS research is highly controversial.
http://ibsgroup.org/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f...261/m/443103162also"However, other studies have shown a much lower prevalence of SIBO in patients with IBS. In a recently reported retrospective study of patients who were referred for glucose hydrogen breath testing for SIBO, only 11% of 113 patients who met the Rome II criteria for IBS tested positive for SIBO, suggesting that IBS symptoms are often unrelated to SIBO.[4] On the basis of currently available data, the contributing role of SIBO in the pathophysiology of IBS remains controversial, and the large variation in the prevalence of SIBO in IBS (10% to 84%) indicates the problematic state of this research, particularly with regard to the accuracy of breath testing in detecting SIBO in patients with altered (particularly accelerated) gastrointestinal motility.Further epidemiologic studies and placebo-controlled clinical trials aiming at eradicating SIBO are necessary to clarify the true impact of SIBO on IBS symptoms. With regard to the latter, several small treatment trials have been reported and demonstrated improvement in IBS symptoms with antibiotic (eg, neomycin and rifaximin) therapy.[2,5] However, the results of a larger multicenter study with rifaximin are awaited with anticipation.From a clinical standpoint, until this issue is clarified, clinicians should consider SIBO in an IBS patient with typical symptoms (eg, bloating, distention, and diarrhea), as well as in patients with these symptoms who do not fulfill the diagnostic criteria for IBS."
http://ibsgroup.org/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f...261/m/947102852MedGenMed GastroenterologyIBS -- Review and What's NewAmy Foxx-Orenstein, DO, FACG, FACP Medscape General Medicine. 2006;8(3):20. ©2006 MedscapePosted 07/26/2006Small Intestinal Bacterial OvergrowthThe presence of a higher than usual population of bacteria in the small intestine (leading to bacterial fermentation of poorly digestible starches and subsequent gas production) has been proposed as a potential etiologic factor in IBS.[71] Pimentel and colleagues have shown that, when measured by the lactose hydrogen breath test (LHBT), small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) has been detected in 78% to 84% of patients with IBS.[71,72] However, the accuracy of the LHBT in testing for the presence of SIBO has been questioned.[73] Sensitivity of the LHBT for SIBO has been shown to be as low as 16.7%, and specificity approximately 70%.[74] Additionally, this test may suboptimally assess treatment response.[75] The glucose breath test has been shown to be a more reliable tool,[76] with a 75% sensitivity for SIBO[77] vs 39% with LHBT for the "double-peak" method of SIBO detection.[74] In a recently conducted retrospective study involving review of patient charts for the presence of gastrointestinal-related symptoms (including IBS) in patients who were referred for glucose hydrogen breath tests for SIBO, of 113 patients who met Rome II criteria for IBS, 11% tested positive for SIBO.[78] Thus, results demonstrated that IBS symptoms are often unrelated to the presence of SIBO. Despite the controversy regarding the contribution of SIBO to the underlying pathophysiology of IBS and its symptoms, short-term placebo-controlled clinical studies with select antibiotics, including neomycin and rifaximin, have demonstrated symptom improvement in IBS patients.[61,72,79] Antibiotics may therefore have potential utility in select subgroups of IBS patients in whom SIBO contributes to symptoms. However, the chronic nature of IBS symptoms often leads to the need for long-term treatment. Given the fact that long-term use of antibiotics is generally undesirable, the place of antibiotics in IBS therapy remains to be established""Serotonin SignalingOf the putative mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of IBS, the strongest evidence points to the role of serotonin in the GI tract. "
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/532089_printIs there a relationship between IBS and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth?IBS and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO)"Although the theory that SIBO causes IBS is tantalizing and there is much anecdotal information that supports it, the rigorous scientific studies that are necessary to prove or disprove the theory have just begun. Nevertheless, many physicians have already begun to treat patients with IBS for SIBO. In addition, a lack of rigorous scientific studies demonstrating benefit from antibiotics and probiotics has not stopped physicians from using them for treating patients. "
http://www.medicinenet.com/irritable_bowel...drome/page6.htmThere is a lot more and I have a editorial you might want to read if you email me, I will send it to you on this subject.
