A qualitative and quantitative change in the correct species composition of the intestinal or skin microflora is called dysbiosis. That is, it is such a microbial state, which is characterized by an imbalance of microflora inside the body or on its surface. The most noticeable signs of intestinal dysbiosis appear in the gastrointestinal tract, but they can also be found on the skin, any open surface or mucous membrane of the body. This applies to the vagina, lungs, mouth, nasal cavity, and sinuses, ears, nails, or eyes. The causes of dysbiosis are associated with various diseases, for example, inflammatory bowel diseases, as well as with chronic fatigue syndrome.
In small amounts, microbial colonies are generally beneficial. They perform a number of necessary functions, and also protect the body from the penetration of pathogenic microbes. These beneficial colonies of microbial organisms compete with each other, which helps maintain a balance between them and avoid the dominance of specific microorganisms. When this balance is disturbed by a variety of antibiotics, their inappropriate use or due to alcohol abuse, the microbial colonies show a decrease in their ability to control each other's growth. This can lead to an overly rapid growth of one or more colonies, which then harm some other useful bacteria colonies, resulting in intestinal dysbiosis. Symptoms of it depend on the severity of the course of the disease.
Typically, dysbiosis is accompanied by severe weakness, malaise, decreased performance and headache. With a pale face and a general emaciated form, a person's abdomen is swollen. Babies cry because they are concerned about abdominal pain, which in newborns usually leads to intestinal dysbiosis. Symptoms: bloating, rumbling, and diarrhea (diarrhea). The stool is greenish, porridge-like consistency, has a fetid odor, with increasing frequency it becomes watery. The patient loses his appetite.
There are four stages of this disease, which, it should be recalled, is not included in the International Classification of Diseases. Foreign experts often use a term such as SIBR, called the syndrome of excessive bacterial growth. SIBR is diagnosed if more than 105 microorganisms are found in 1 dm3 of aspirate of the small intestine, and the flora of the small intestine approaches the state characteristic of the colon. In our country, only some doctors diagnose "intestinal dysbiosis", the symptoms of which depend on the specific stage.
At the first stage, a moderate development of pathogenic microflora is noticeable , but there are no signs of intestinal dysfunction. At the second stage, a critical decrease in the number of lactobacilli and intestinal bifidobacteria is observed, that is, the obligate flora is noticeably changing, and colonies of pathogenic bacteria are rapidly developing, as a result, signs of intestinal dysfunction (flatulence, abdominal pain and greenish loose stools) begin to appear. The third stage is characterized by inflammatory lesions of the intestinal walls due to the development of pathogenic microflora. There is already a chronic intestinal dysbiosis. Symptoms are characterized by the appearance in the stool of particles of undigested food, and for children there is a risk of developmental delay. The fourth stage is preceded by acute intestinal infection due to the practical absence of obligate flora. It contains conditionally pathogenic and pathogenic bacteria and fungi. As a result, vitamin deficiency, anemia, and general exhaustion occur.
If a doctor is diagnosed with intestinal dysbiosis, the treatment and its symptoms should be related to the root causes (for example, due to excessive use of antibiotics or as a result of infectious diseases). Only after that the necessary preparations are selected containing bacteria that are deficient in the body, forming an obligate flora and able to restore balance between specific microbial colonies. At the same time, the patient is prescribed drugs that suppress pathogenic microflora, as well as drugs containing enzymes (necessary to ensure the chemical reactions of the digestive process), which are produced by a healthy microflora in a healthy person.