Clostridium difficile-Associated Diarrhea and Colitis
Clostridium difficile-Associated Diarrhea and Colitis: Clinical Practice Guidelines by the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology (SHEA) and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA)
Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology 1995; 16:459-77
C difficile is the most frequently identified cause of nosocomial diarrhea. The majority of C difficile infections are acquired nosocomially, and most patients remain asymptomatic following acquisition. Antimicrobial exposure is the greatest risk factor for patients, especially clindamycin, cephalosporins, and penicillins, although virtually every antimicrobial has been implicated. Cases of CDAD unassociated with prior antimicrobial or antineoplastic use are very rare… Symptomatic and asymptomatic infected patients are the major reservoirs and sources for environmental contamination. Both genotypic and phenotypic typing systems for C difficile are available and have enhanced epidemiologic investigation greatly.