Impact of fecal microbiota transplantation in severe alcoholic hepatitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Severe alcoholic hepatitis (SAH) is a serious condition with few treatments. By modifying the gut-liver axis, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) was proposed as a treatment for SAH. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the efficacy of FMT the standard of care (SOC) in improving SAH patient survival rates.

METHODS

A thorough search of electronic databases was conducted till September 2023. The survival rates of SAH patients undergoing FMT SOC were compared. Using Review Manager 5.4, odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.

RESULTS

The meta-analysis consisted of six studies with a total of 371 patients with SAH. Patients who received FMT had significantly higher survival rates at 1 and 3 months compared to those who received SOC, with pooled OR of 2.91 (95% CI: 1.56-5.42,  = 0.0008) and 3.07 (95% CI: 1.81-5.20,  < 0.0001), respectively. However, the survival advantage disappeared after 6 months (OR: 2.96, 95% CI: 0.99-8.85,  = 0.05) and 1 year of follow-up (OR: 1.81, 95% CI: 0.44-7.46,  = 0.41).

CONCLUSION

This meta-analysis highlights the potential of FMT to significantly improve short-term survival rates in SAH patients. However, the survival benefit did not last 6-12 months. These findings call for additional research into the effectiveness of FMT over the long term, along with strategies for extending the survival benefit.