C. Difficile

Study finds antibiotic use alters native gut bacteria that normally compete with C. diff for nutrients.

An analysis designed to assess infectious disease mortality in the United States between 1980 and 2014 revealed that the country has seen an increase in deaths caused by diarrheal diseases.

Maintaining consistent environmental cleaning and disinfection is critical to warding off emerging and re-emerging pathogens.

SMUCLA implements high-touch wipe down intervention to address the need for environmental disinfection of cancer patient care areas.

Dr. Richard Vickers, discusses C. difficile rates in the United Kingdom.

Investigators develop a statistical model predicting which bacterial strains will engraft after FMT.

Stay up-to-date on the latest infectious disease news by checking out our top 5 articles of the week.

Fecal transplantation and molecular testing are among the new recommendations.

Dr. Richard Vickers, discusses what the next steps are for Summit Therapeutic’s ridinilazole.

Edmond Hooker, MD, DrPH, stresses that the FDA and the CDC need to intervene to ensure that hospital mattresses get cleaned appropriately.

Barley Chironda, RPN, CIC, stresses that understanding what motivates health care workers’ actions is crucial for reducing C. diff rates in hospitals.

Glenn Tillotson, PhD, FIDSA, explains how costs associated with Clostridium difficile compare with other problematic health care-associated infections.

Richard Haupt, MD, MPH, explains why it’s harder to cover adults rather than children when it comes to vaccination.

Edmond Hooker, MD, DrPH, discusses a study that assessed the use of mattress covers in hospitals to cut down on CDI rates.

The FDA has approved Firvanq for the treatment of C. diff-associated diarrhea and enterocolitis caused by Staphylococcus aureus.

Dr. Richard Vickers, explains how ridinilazole affected the gut microbiome in participants of a phase 2 study.

In the USA: Nearly half a million Americans suffer from Clostridium difficile (C. diff.) infections in a single year according to a study released in 2015 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Edmond Hooker, MD, DrPH, discusses how contaminated hospital mattresses act as a vector for spreading drug-resistant infections.

Dr. Richard Vickers, discusses how ridinilazole showed superior efficacy for the treatment of C. diff when compared with vancomycin in a phase 2 study.

Richard Haupt, MD, MPH, discusses what is needed to ensure that a future C. diff vaccine is adequately stocked and delivered to wherever individuals show up for vaccination.

Barley Chironda, RPN, CIC, discusses current guidance for disinfection practices against C. diff.

A recent study compares the effectiveness of a novel fidaxomicin therapy with vancomycin for the treatment of C. difficile.

Edmond Hooker, MD, DrPH, discusses the cost benefit of investing in launderable hospital mattress covers to prevent CDIs.

In case you missed them, we've compiled the top 5 articles from this past week.

Dr. Richard Vickers, explains how ridinilazole is unique in its spectrum of activity compared with other antibiotics that target C. diff and have been approved or are in development.

Richard Haupt, MD, MPH, discusses what would be required to adequately implement the delivery of a future C. diff vaccine.

Dr. Richard Vickers, explains how antibiotics used to treat C. diff also damage the microbiome.

At the 5th annual international C. diff Awareness Conference and Health Expo, Dr. Edmond Hooker discussed an underreported problem in health care facilities everywhere.

Edmond Hooker, MD, DrPH, discusses the use of a launderable mattress cover to reduce C. diff rates in hospitals.

Investigators from the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, have discovered that a common food additive, trehalose (an artificial sugar frequently derived from mushrooms or seaweed), can be linked with the increase and severity of outbreaks involving 2 strains of Clostridium difficile.