Three-part clinical rule predicts reinfection of C.difficile
In a study funded by NIH, Harvard Medical School, and the Irish Health Research Board, researchers have found a method to accurately predict which patients will experience a recurrence of C.difficile infection:
The method correctly identified 77.3% of patients who had recurrent infection in a derivation cohort studied in 1998, according to Ciarán P. Kelly, M.D., of Harvard Medical School, and colleagues.
…
C. difficile has become the leading cause of hospital-acquired infectious diarrhea. It affects millions of patients a year. Multiple recurrences are common, despite successful treatment of the initial episode
“This rule is valuable in clinical practice as it defines a high-risk population in whom awareness of the risk can facilitate more prompt recognition, diagnosis, and treatment of recurrent C. difficile,” Dr. Kelly said in a statement.
The rule combines three variables: age, disease severity, and antibiotic use.
Full article: Clinical Rule Predicts C. Diff Recurrrence
Tags: cdifficile, strategies, studies
