Practitioner FAQs

At the moment Co-Biome MetaXplore services are only available within Australia and can only be referred by qualified healthcare professionals.

Due to Australian biosecurity requirements, we cannot accept samples posted to our laboratory from overseas. We can only accept samples sent from Australia.

The Microba lab, that Co-Biome share, is NATA accredited for Human Pathology (ISO 15189). This lab where all Co-Biome samples are analysed has been successful in consistently meeting international laboratory standards. This ensures you and your patients can trust you will receive reliable and quality results every time.

As soon as your patient has made payment for their Co-Biome MetaXplore report their kit will be dispatched within 24-48 hours.

Co-Biome MetaXplore reports are available in your Practitioner Portal within three weeks after your patient’s sample has been completed and received at our lab.

Healthcare professionals can submit a referral in the practitioner portal. The patient will then receive an SMS where they can place an order for the referral. A kit is then dispatched to the patient within 24-48 hours. The patient completes the sample and returns to our lab for analysis. Up to three weeks later the patient’s report is available in the practitioner portal and an optional Clinical Application Specialist support session can be booked.

Co-Biome MetaXplore tests can be used to support your clinical decision making for a variety of clinical indications including:
– Gastrointestinal health – IBS, IBD, intestinal permeability, constipation, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, heartburn/dyspepsia, intestinal methanogen overgrowth, diverticular disease, pathogen infection, colorectal cancer
– Cardiometabolic health – obesity, insulin resistance, metabolic disease, heart disease, weight gain, weight loss
– Nervous system – migraine, fatigue
– Hormones and fertility – PCOS, hormonal imbalance
– Immunity – autoimmune, low immunity, chronic inflammation
– Diet, environment and lifestyle – chemical sensitivities, oxalate processing, drug sensitivities, alcoholism

Co-Biome MetaXplore reports are recommended for adults aged 18 or above. That is because the reference ranges and clinical and research insights in Co-Biome reports have been based on an adult population. If you are interested in testing a child’s gut microbiome you may be interested in using Microba Insight.

If these are part of your patient’s usual habits, there is no need for them to stop taking supplements or probiotics before taking their sample as we want to assess their ‘normal’ microbiome. We suggest patients maintain their normal supplement regime for two weeks prior to sampling and collecting a sample from a bowel movement that is typical for them.

Certain medications can alter your patient’s gut microbiome including antibiotics, immunotherapy, immunosuppressants, chemotherapy, cholesterol-lowering drugs, acid reflux/indigestion treatments, and the diabetes medication ‘metformin’, among others. This does not mean patients on these medications cannot be referred for a Co-Biome MetaXplore service, but their medication should be a consideration when interpreting the report.

Based on the existing literature, we suggest waiting at least one month after short-term antibiotic use before testing. Current research shows that the effects of taking broad-spectrum antibiotics for between five to ten days can be seen in a person’s gut microbiome for a year or even longer. Although the gut microbiome does start to recover soon after antibiotics are stopped. Studies have observed that after 1-2 months the majority of gut microbiota returned to pre-treatment levels (with the exception of some species that took much longer to recover). You can read more on this here. Unfortunately, there is little research available about the length of time it takes the gut microbiome to recover after longer-term use of antibiotics (greater than 10 days).

We suggest that your patient avoid completing their sample during their menstruation period or for three days after to avoid contamination of the sample.

Yes, your patient can still send a sample if they have been taking NSAIDs. Although the use of NSAIDs will impact the level of calprotectin reported and should be considered in the report interpretation.

Where possible it is best to avoid initiating antibiotic, antimicrobial, antifungal, antiseptic and antiviral therapies before your patient provides their sample as this can impact their results.

We recommend patients avoid drinking alcohol two days before providing a sample where possible. If patients drink alcohol before taking a sample this may impact their results.

We recommend if patients have had a recent colon cleanse, including those used prior to a colonoscopy, that they wait at least two weeks prior to sampling. Research has shown that colon cleanses will reduce the population of bacteria in the colon, and some species will be reduced more than others. Research suggests that it takes up to 14 days for the gut microbiome to recover after a colon cleanse.

We recommend that Co-Biome MetaXplore kits be returned within a year of receiving them. This ensures the stability of the sample provided and accurate reporting.

It is advised for your patient to collect their sample from the first bowel movement of the day and allow 45 minutes to collect and complete the sampling process.

Have your patient be prepared to take their sample from the first bowel movement of the day.

Yes, your patient can send a liquid stool sample for analysis. However it is important to note that we will not be able to report on faecal elastase and faecal pH as liquid stools impact the accuracy of faecal elastase and pH measurements.

If your patient has a liquid stool they may wish to use a disposable container to collect their sample in. They can then take their sample/s as detailed in the instruction booklet.

Yes, your patient can provide a sample with visible blood although the presence of visible blood in a faecal sample has a higher possibility of failing the initial assessment for sample processing. If possible, waiting until your patient can provide a sample without active bleeding would be advised.

Generally, we will only use or disclose personal information about you for the purposes for which it was collected. We may disclose personal information about you to:
a) service providers and partners, who assist us in operating our business;
b) any industry body, tribunal and/or court in connection with any complaint made by you about us; and
c) any other organisation or person with your consent or as permitted or required by law.
We may also disclose to Australia Post certain personal information you provide us (such as your email address, phone number and/or residential address) in connection with us providing our services to you (this information may be used by Australia Post for the purposes of providing notification of tracking events and collecting any relevant feedback in relation to the delivery or tracking service).
We do not typically or routinely disclose personal information to overseas recipients, although this may change over time. Unless we have your consent, or an exception under the APPs applies, we will only disclose your personal information to overseas recipients where we have taken reasonable steps to ensure that the overseas recipient does not breach the APPs in relation to your personal information.
For more information, please refer to our Privacy Policy.

We take your privacy seriously. Read our Privacy Policy.

Yes, optional interpretation sessions for practitioners are available with a Co-Biome Clinical Application Specialist. Bookings can be made at here.

Co-Biome run clinician user research sessions to ensure we are listening and actioning the needs of clinicians. If you are a qualified healthcare professional you can earn a $180 gift card for providing feedback in an hour interview. Register here for a user research interview.

You can contact info@co-biome.com to share any feedback or complaints.