title: Epidemiology of recurrences or reinfections of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea.
abstract: Approximately 15 to 35% of patients with a first episode of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea relapse within 2 months. Between 1994 and 1997, strains from 93 hospitalized patients with C. difficile recurrences were fingerprinted by using both serotyping and PCR-ribotyping. The results showed that 48.4% of clinical recurrences were, in fact, reinfections with a different strain of C. difficile. Rates of clinical recurrences could therefore be reduced by implementing strict isolation precautions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Hôpital Saint-Antoine, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Paris, France. frederic.barbut@sat.ap-hop-paris.fr
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Barbut
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Richard
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hamadi
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Chomette
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Burghoffer
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Petit
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016360:Clostridioides difficile / Q000145:classification*; D003015:Clostridium Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D010297:Paris / Q000453:epidemiology; D012008:Recurrence