When Should The GI Effects Comprehensive Stool Profile Be Considered?

GI Effects Comprehensive Stool Profile assesses three critical areas of gut health: digestive function, gut inflammation, and the gut microbiome—areas affecting not only GI health, but overall health as well. For patients with symptoms that may have gastrointestinal dysfunction as their root cause, comprehensive stool diagnostics provide an effective tool for gaining clinical insight into next steps.

In addition to performing critical digestive functions, the intestinal tract contains significant amounts of organisms — the gut microbiome. Imbalances in this internal ecosystem have been associated in the scientific literature with a wide variety of common illnesses including, but not limited to:

• Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)
• Diabetes
• Obesity
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Celiac and Other Malabsorption Disorders
• Mood Disorders
• Autoimmune
• Autism

Assessing and normalizing GI function can have profound effects on overall health, leading to improvement in these and other conditions. Comprehensive Stool Profile is a critical clinical tool in the management of patients presenting with symptoms that can be associated with compromised gut health.

 The Comprehensive GI Effects Stool Profile is an advanced stool test that provides immediate, actionable clinical information for the management of gut health. Using the most innovative technologies available, this ground-breaking stool test offers:

• PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), a molecular assay optimized for stool testing assesses 24 commensal bacteria associated in the scientific literature with health and disease, and provides valuable insight into the human microbiome
• Calprotectin, a biomarker that effectively differentiates between Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)*
• O&P (ova & parasite), the gold standard for parasite identification

What is the Comprehensive GI Effects Stool Profile?

Comprehensive Stool Profile is an innovative stool test measuring premier biomarkers of gastrointestinal function, providing valuable clinical insight into digestive performance, gut inflammation, and the gut microbiome — areas affecting not only GI health, but overall health as well.

The sophisticated biomarkers from the GI Effects Comprehensive Profile are reported using an intuitive DIG framework, providing key clinical information for three main gastrointestinal functional areas:

• Digestion/Absorption:
  • Pancreatic Elastase-1, a marker of exocrine pancreatic function
  • Products of Protein Breakdown, markers of undigested protein reaching the colon
  • Fecal Fat, markers of fat breakdown and absorption
• Inflammation/Immunology:
  • Calprotectin, a marker of neutrophil-driven inflammation; produced in abundance at sites of inflammation, this biomarker has been proven clinically useful in differentiating between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)*
  • Eosinophil Protein X, a marker of eosinophil-driven inflammation and allergic response
  • Fecal Secretory IgA, a marker of gut secretory immunity and barrier function
  • Additional biomarkers available: Fecal Lactoferrin
• Gut Microbiome:
  • Metabolic indicators, demonstrating specific and vital metabolic functions performed by the microbiota
    • Short-Chain Fatty Acids, a metabolomic indicator of GI microbiome health
    • Beta-glucuronidase, an inducible enzyme involved in the metabolism and bioavailability of food and drug compounds; also produced by gut bacteria
  • Commensal Bacteria, demonstrating the composition, diversity, and relative abundance of gut organisms, all of which are linked to both gastrointestinal and general health
    • More than 95% of commensal gut organisms are anaerobic and are difficult to recover by traditional (aerobic) culture techniques; molecular DNA techniques are now considered the standard for anaerobic bacteria assessment in research, permitting identification and quantification of multiple organisms with a single specimen.
    • The Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) methodology can identify bacterial populations at any level of taxonomy, as broadly as phylum and as narrowly as species. This ability permits analysis of the gut microbiome at a desired degree of complexity.
    • Comprehensive Stool Profile assesses a key set of 24 clinically relevant genera/species that map to 7 major phyla.
  • Bacterial and mycological culture, which demonstrate the presence of specific beneficial and pathological organisms
    • Traditional bacterial culture complements DNA-based tests to provide an expanded survey of a patient’s gut microbiota, beyond the specific organisms targeted by PCR.
  • Parasitology
    • Comprehensive Stool Profile provides microscopic examination of fecal specimens for ova and parasites (O&P), the gold standard of diagnosis for many parasites.
    • Enzyme immunoassay (EIA), widely recognized for its diagnostic utility in the detection of pathogenic antigens, is used for the identification of Cryptosporidium, Entamoeba histolytica, and Giardia lamblia.
    • Determination of one-day or three-day sample collection is based on clinician’s clinical index of suspicion for parasitic infection. If no/low suspicion, a one day sample will likely be adequate. If high suspicion, a three day sample collection is optimal.

Your GI package includes…

• 7 day Food Journal Analysis.
• Interpretation of your Stool Test results.
• 30-60 min Phone consultation.

Need Help?

Please contact us immediately if you experience any technical problems whatsoever, or if you have any general questions about this service. We are here to help. Just email [email protected] and we will get right back to you within 24 hours, or next working day.

Not sure if this is the right test for you? Schedule a Free 15 min phone Consult