Microba offers the only testing range that gives pioneering practitioners the full picture of the gut microbiome ecosystem, how it’s affecting patient health and what to do about it – all backed by evidence from 1,500+ peer-reviewed studies.
To support real-world clinical practice, our Microbiome Explorer range consists of three testing options. This offers a flexible microbiome testing approach, providing practitioners with the most appropriate insights – no more, no less – for every patient, circumstance, and clinical scenario across time.
This guide will help you select the right test option for your patient.
Confident care starts with the right test
Choosing the right test starts with clarity: what are you trying to understand, and what information will meaningfully guide recommended care plans and interventions? Each consultation brings a different combination of medical histories, symptoms, and lifestyles – and you rarely know who or what you’ll be working with until the conversation begins. Some patients require a comprehensive analysis to understand complex or chronic symptoms. For others, additional data may not meaningfully inform treatment or symptom management.
The Microbiome Explorer range is designed to support many different areas of health, including gastrointestinal, cardiometabolic, immune, and nervous system health. By aligning the level of investigation with clinical needs and patient accessibility considerations, practitioners can make confident, evidence-led decisions, supporting more precise patient care.
Below we outline where each test may be most appropriately ordered.
Microbiome Explorer Comprehensive: First-line, comprehensive ecosystem analysis for complex presentations
Microbiome Explorer Comprehensive provides key insights about the microbiome’s impact on patient health combined with key GI health markers and pathogen screening.
Our unique technology fuses together multiple testing approaches including microbiome sequencing using shotgun metagenomics, GI health markers and PCR pathogen screening, for the most comprehensive view of the microbiome ecosystem from a single sample.
Microbiome Explorer Comprehensive is intended for chronic presentations including possible infection – ideal for complex cases where drivers are unclear.
Microbiome Explorer Extended: Balanced investigation to support follow-up care and refinement
Microbiome Explorer Extended provides key insights about the microbiome’s impact on patient health combined with key GI health markers. It’s most suited to be used for chronic presentations where infection has been ruled out.
By narrowing the scope of analysis, it also offers a clinically robust option for patients where cost needs to be considered, while still offering high-quality insights.
Microbiome Explorer Essentials: Accessible microbiome monitoring over time
Microbiome Explorer Essentials provides insights about the microbiome’s impact on patient health. This test is most suitable for value conscious patients or for use in retesting.
As a microbiome-only test, this Microbiome Explorer option is available at a lower cost, involves a simple and easy swab collection process, and can be returned to our laboratory any day of the week (vs. 3-4 days only for other tests), increasing patients’ accessibility to testing.
Practitioner Test Selection Tool
Need help determining which test could be most relevant for your patient? Our Practitioner Test Selector tool will ask you a few questions about your patient to help you select the right Microba test.
It’s been intentionally designed to complement your clinical judgement, helping you feel confident in your decision-making. After all, you’re the expert in patient care!
Supporting confident referrals for practitioners and accessibility for patients
Every test within the Microbiome Explorer range is built on the same clinical-grade system and backed by evidence from 1,500+ peer-reviewed studies – there’s no difference in quality between the 3 tests. By aligning the choice of test coverage with clinical need, your patients’ symptoms, and accessibility requirements, you can refer with confidence. And confident referrals support better patient experience, better testing, and better care.
