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Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) Clostridium difficile (C. difficile)
Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) caused almost half a million infections among patients in the United States in a single year, according to a study released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Approximately 29,000 patients died within 30 days of the initial diagnosis of C. difficile. (around 5%)
Of those, about 15,000 deaths were estimated to be directly attributable to C. difficile infections, making C. difficile a very important cause of infectious disease death in the United States.
More than 80 percent of the deaths associated with C. difficile occurred among Americans aged 65 years or older. C. difficile causes an inflammation of the colon and deadly diarrhea.
Previous studies indicate that C. difficile has become the most common microbial cause of healthcare-associated infections in U.S. hospitals and costs up to $4.8 billion each year in excess health care costs for acute care facilities alone.
The new study found that 1 out of every 5 patients with a healthcare-associated C. difficile infection experienced a recurrence of the infection and 1 out of every 11 patients aged 65 or older with a healthcare-associated C. difficile infection died within 30 days of diagnosis. “C. difficile infections cause immense suffering and death for thousands of Americans each year,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H.
originally posted by: JohnnyJetson
The Only successful method they've found to treat this "imbalance" in the person's gut flora is a "poo transplant" from a healthy donor so that a happy garden will grow in your gut rather than this 'difficult' sheet
Recurrent infection Up to 20% of people with C. difficile get sick again, either because the initial infection never went away or because they've been reinfected with a different strain of the bacteria.
Your risk of recurrence is higher if you:
Are older than 65
Are taking other antibiotics for a different condition while being treated with antibiotics for C. difficile infection
Have a severe underlying medical disorder, such as chronic kidney failure, inflammatory bowel disease or chronic liver disease
Treatment for recurrent disease may include:
- Antibiotics. Antibiotic therapy for recurrence may involve one or more courses of a medication. In general, guidelines recommend not repeating the same therapy used for an initial infection for a recurrent infection. The effectiveness of antibiotic therapy declines with each subsequent recurrence.
- Fecal microbiota transplant (FMT). Also known as a stool transplant, FMT is emerging as an alternative strategy for treating recurrent C. difficile infections. Though FMT is considered experimental and is not yet approved by the FDA, clinical studies are currently underway.
FMT restores healthy intestinal bacteria by placing another person's (donor's) stool in your colon through a colonoscope or nasogastric tube. Donors are screened for medical conditions, their blood is tested for infections, and stools are carefully screened for parasites, viruses and other infectious bacteria before being used for FMT.
Research has shown that FMT done one or more times has a success rate higher than 85% for treating C. difficile infections.
Probiotics. Probiotics are organisms, such as bacteria and yeast, and are available over the counter. The role of these products in C. difficile infection is controversial. Research hasn't consistently shown that currently available products are helpful in preventing or treating infection with C. difficile. Advanced probiotics are currently being studied for their potential use in C. difficile treatment or prevention but aren't currently available.
originally posted by: dogstar23
a reply to: JohnnyJetson
Nobody is freaking out over 30 deaths, its the potential to turn into half a million seniors choking to death at home that is the concern - thus the preventive measures.