Inflammatory bowel syndrome (IBS) is rife in the UK, with an estimated 17 percent of adults reporting symptoms. Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) is recognized as a cause of IBS, but access to diagnostic testing remains limited.
Breath analysis has been shown to be effective in detecting SIBO, and OMED Health has developed a home-testing kit, linked to an expert diagnostic service.
Welbeck Health Partners, a specialist outpatient healthcare provider in the UK, has recently rolled out the home-based testing pathway following a successful three-month evaluation phase. Here, Klara Wilson and Devinder Bansi from Welbeck, explain how the system works and what difference it's making to their patients.
How does the home-based SIBO testing practice pathway work in practice?
The pathway is initiated when a patient sees one of our specialists in house or via external referrals. Our clinical team then organizes delivery of the postal kit to the patient's home address anywhere in the UK. Kits typically arrive within two working days.
The kit includes instructions on how to download its associated app and prepare the test. On completion of the test, the app instantly delivers the results to the patient and sends a report to their referring consultant for follow up.
What are the clinical or operational challenges with conventional SIBO testing that this home-based approach addresses?
Testing in the clinic can take between two and three hours, and normally requires some waiting between samples, which can be quite tiring for patients, especially after an overnight fasting period.
The home testing kit allows patients to complete the test in the comfort of their own home, making it particularly convenient for those who live further away. It also benefits patients who may not be able to dedicate a full day to attending an appointment, helping to reduce non-attendance by allowing the test to be completed at a time that suits them.
What did you learn during the three-month evaluation of the home-based pathway?
We discovered that this is a quick, efficient, and extremely convenient way to provide SIBO testing for our patients. The platform used to order test kits was easy to use, and we were able to work with the manufacturers to make some amendments. For example, patients can hold the device for up to 90 days, to allow time for retesting if necessary. The developers added a really useful feature for our team to monitor how long the patient has left before they need to return the device.
Patients reported that they liked receiving instant results via the app. This ensured a fast turnaround, leading to greater satisfaction with the service from both the patient and doctor's perspective.
From a patient perspective, what differences have you observed in uptake, compliance, or time to diagnosis with home-based breath testing compared with clinic-based pathways?
So far, we’ve sent out 23 home kits and patient feedback has been excellent. Because the service has only recently been fully launched to all consultants on Level 7, additional time is required to assess its impact accurately. But, anecdotally, our clinicians are very happy with the added versatility and flexibility it allows.
What we can say so far is that turnaround time varies. Most patients perform the test promptly on receipt of the kit, receiving instant results that improve on the average two-working-day turnaround for our in-person service. However, some patients might feel less accountable for the test because they are not booked into a formal appointment, and might wait days or weeks before completing it.
How do you see digital breath-testing technologies fitting into the wider diagnostic work-up for patients presenting with IBS-like symptoms?
Breath testing can be incorporated into the diagnostic work‑up for patients with IBS‑like symptoms quite easily. It offers clinicians an early opportunity to intervene, which reassures patients that all possible causes for their ongoing symptoms are being explored.
As with some clinical investigations, the results are not completely definitive. The outcomes can vary depending on how closely the patient followed the preparation, their digestive transit time, and the way their own gut produces hydrogen and methane.
However, the process is supported throughout by an experienced clinical team that oversees reporting and interpretation. We’re available to guide patients as much or as little as they need, whether they prefer to attend in-clinic testing or complete the test at home at a time that suits them.
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