Question 1

What is a microbiota transplant and how does it work?

Accepted Answer

Trillions of bacteria live in the gut — they help digest food, maintain the protective barrier, and take part in the work of the immune and nervous systems. When that community is disrupted, harmful bacteria take over the space left by the useful ones. A transplant moves a ready-made community of bacteria from a screened healthy donor into the patient's gut. The preparation is taken by mouth — this is not surgery. The bacteria start settling in quickly: the first of them take hold within six hours of the dose.

Question 2

How is this different from ordinary probiotics?

Accepted Answer

A probiotic is a handful of bacterial strains that are cleared from the gut quickly. A transplant moves an entire community together with the environment it lives in — the clinic compares it to transplanting a tree with its soil rather than a few branches. Gut bacteria work as a team, and the links between them matter as much as the bacteria themselves. There is a flip side: probiotics should not be taken blindly — if a given species is already abundant, adding more upsets the balance and can cause bloating and diarrhoea.

Question 3

Which conditions is it used for?

Accepted Answer

The main areas are: recurrent C. difficile infection, inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, chronic constipation, autism spectrum disorders in children, and metabolic disorders. For chronic constipation, a review of nine studies found improvement in 64.8% of patients and lasting remission in about half. Whether the method suits you is decided by a doctor, based on the questionnaire and the test.

Question 4

How soon will there be a result?

Accepted Answer

The bacteria begin to settle in within hours, but a visible result takes longer. In autism, changes in behaviour and speech usually become noticeable after about a month. For gut problems it is generally sooner. The clinic is straightforward about this: it cannot guarantee a result in every patient, or that symptoms will not return.

Question 5

How long does the effect last?

Accepted Answer

Transplanted microbiota holds for anywhere from a month to several years — it depends on diet, lifestyle and any medication taken. After six to twelve months a follow-up test is done, and it decides whether a consolidating course is needed. For a lasting result several courses are usually recommended.

Question 6

How do I know whether a transplant is needed at all?

Accepted Answer

The decision is based on the microbiota test. The report gives an overall gut-health score: below 70, a transplant is recommended. Between 70 and 80 it is done only when there are symptoms and the test shows a high match with a donor — otherwise probiotics are tried first. There is another marker as well: if the core beneficial bacteria make up less than 60% of the whole microflora, the balance is considered disturbed.

Question 7

What are the limitations for a child with autism?

Accepted Answer

The clinic accepts a child if autism is confirmed and there are no other neurological conditions — epilepsy, cerebral palsy, tics, or chromosomal and genetic abnormalities. There must also be no severe bowel disease requiring urgent treatment, no severe immunodeficiency, no history of severe allergy, and no marked underweight. The final decision always rests with the doctor, who looks at the whole picture.

Question 8

Can autism be cured completely?

Accepted Answer

No, and the clinic does not promise it. In a mild form a child may end up differing little from peers. In moderate and severe forms it is about improving speech and the ability to interact, not about a cure. One more thing matters: a transplant does not replace developmental therapy — on the contrary, sessions usually give a more visible result afterwards, so they are continued.

Question 9

Does the child's age matter?

Accepted Answer

Yes, noticeably. The younger the child, the better the response — the nervous system develops within certain windows, and lost ground is hard to recover. So, all else being equal, treatment at a younger age gives more.

Question 10

Who are your donors?

Accepted Answer

Donors are children, adolescents and young adults, usually aged 3 to 30: among them university students and a youth football team. What decides is not age itself but the composition of a given person’s microbiota. Young donors typically carry a higher share of beneficial bacteria than adults. Screening is strict: 251 parameters are tested, infections, antibiotic-resistant bacteria and parasites are ruled out, and lifestyle and the absence of harmful habits are assessed. About 2.4% of candidates pass. Donors are re-tested every eight weeks. A relative of the patient can also become a donor if they pass the full screening.

Question 11

How safe is it?

Accepted Answer

The largest safety study is the work of Qin Huanlong's group, published in Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology in 2022: 8,547 patients, followed from two weeks to five years. Both short-term and long-term safety were rated good. Conditions that arose in patients over long follow-up occurred no more often than in the general population. Adverse reactions are mostly mild and short-lived.

Question 12

What can happen in the first days after the transplant?

Accepted Answer

In the first hours or days a temporary reaction is possible: bloating, gas, a change in stool, aching abdominal pain, weakness and a slight fever, sometimes a headache and body aches, as with a cold. This usually lasts one to three days and resolves on its own, easing as it goes. What should raise concern is the opposite — things getting worse: high fever, a rash, symptoms building day by day. Then contact the doctor straight away. The clinic asks that any reaction be reported in the shared chat.

Question 13

Is this a recognised procedure or an experiment?

Accepted Answer

In China, microbiota transplantation is listed in the national technical standards for medical services under its own code and classified as a new medical technology of low to moderate risk. More than twenty provinces have set official tariffs for it, and it has been included in the schedule of chargeable medical services. The method rests on some twenty-five Chinese expert documents and guidelines, including recent ones on autism spectrum disorders in children and on liver disease.

Question 14

Can a transplant be done on your own?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely not. Donor material without full screening is a direct route to transmitting an infection. In 2019 the New England Journal of Medicine described a case where an antibiotic-resistant bacterium was passed on through insufficiently screened material, after which donor screening requirements were tightened worldwide. The whole point of the procedure is control at every step: donor selection, screening, preparation, and follow-up.

Question 15

What does the microbiota test show?

Accepted Answer

The test is done on a stool sample in the clinic's own laboratory. There are two options. The standard 16S test shows the composition of bacteria down to genus — it is used for a general assessment of gut health. The extended, metagenomic test sees bacteria, fungi and viruses down to the individual species — it is needed when the donor must be matched precisely and the cause of the problem found. The report gives an overall gut-health score, the degree of imbalance, the diversity of the flora, and recommendations.

Question 16

How long does the test result take?

Accepted Answer

About five to seven business days from the moment the sample reaches the laboratory. Add to that the time it takes to deliver the sample itself.

Question 17

How do I prepare for the test?

Accepted Answer

Antibiotics must be stopped a week before the sample is collected — they kill bacteria directly and distort the picture. Probiotics, laxatives and enemas are also best avoided during that week. If something cannot be stopped, it is noted on the form and the laboratory takes it into account. As for diet: for a week, avoid what strongly shifts the flora — large amounts of fibre, fermented and cultured foods, alcohol, coffee, strong tea and spicy food. The sample is collected in the morning. It is not collected during a haemorrhoid flare-up, during menstruation, or if there is blood or mucus in the stool — in that case see a doctor first.

Question 18

How does treatment work?

Accepted Answer

The course has three stages. First, gentle preparation of the gut — a few days of a light diet and, if needed, a mild cleansing agent. Then the preparation itself: six days, one portion each morning on an empty stomach. And the longest stage — maintenance, one or two months, when the new microflora is helped to settle in with a probiotic, dietary fibre and a gentle diet. There are three forms of the preparation — capsules, oil drops and microcapsules. Which one is prescribed is decided by the doctor, based on age, gut condition and how easily the patient swallows.

Question 19

Can I take the preparation home and continue there?

Accepted Answer

The microbiota preparation itself — no. These are live bacteria, and they may not be taken out of China, so all six days of dosing take place on site. The supporting products — the probiotic and dietary fibre — can be taken with you; the clinic issues a supporting document for customs. That is exactly why the maintenance stage, which runs one or two months, is comfortably done at home.

Question 20

How is the preparation stored?

Accepted Answer

It arrives frozen, in dry ice, and is kept in a freezer at around minus twenty degrees — for no longer than thirty days. A thawed preparation must not be refrozen. Before the dose, a portion is taken out in advance, left to stand for about fifteen minutes, and taken undiluted.

Question 21

What is allowed and what is not after the transplant?

Accepted Answer

The main thing is to let the new bacteria settle in. Go to bed before eleven in the evening and sleep seven to nine hours: a disrupted routine throws off the daily rhythm of the microflora. Avoid coffee and strong tea — they irritate the gut. Give up Chinese herbal remedies: some of them suppress bacteria. Seafood only fresh and thoroughly cooked, nothing raw or cold. Among fruit, apples, pears, bananas and citrus work well; watermelon and prunes are best avoided, as they loosen the stool.

Question 22

What if the child falls ill during the course?

Accepted Answer

If the cold is mild and antibiotics are not needed, dosing is usually continued while watching the child. If a doctor prescribes antibiotics, the preparation is paused and resumed after recovery: antibiotics kill precisely the bacteria being introduced. Diarrhoea on its own does not wash out all the microflora — with a short episode most of the bacteria still manage to take hold.

Question 23

How much does treatment cost?

Accepted Answer

There are two packages: basic at 28,400 CNY and extended at 44,600. Both are the full three-stage course; the difference lies in the form of the preparation, the length of maintenance, and whether the microbiota test is included. A detailed breakdown of what each package covers, along with the prices of additional tests, is on the Pricing page.

Question 24

How do I start?

Accepted Answer

Write to us on Telegram or WhatsApp, or leave a request on the site. A doctor will look at your situation, say whether the method suits you, and explain which questionnaires to fill in and how to provide the sample. The initial case assessment is free.

Frequently Asked Questions

About the Method

Who It Suits

Safety and Donors

Testing and Preparation

The Course and Afterwards

Ready to Take the First Step?