title: Persisting variation in testing and reportingClostridium difficilecases.
abstract: Previous evidence suggested a significant variation in the testing algorithms used across the United Kingdom for the diagnosis ofClostridium difficileinfection (CDI) and new national guidelines were issued in 2012. The main aim of this paper was to explore if such variation in testing and reporting is still present, to compare the management of CDI cases, and to investigate if there is any significant variation in the antibiotic policies among different hospitals. Using London hospitals as a sample, results show that there is still a wide variation of testing methods and reporting used, making comparisons difficult. It is likely that the overall variability in practices would be greater at a national and, even more, at international level. The relationship between broad-spectrum antibiotics andC. difficileincidence and alternative approaches in antibiotic guidelines may require further studies.
authors.affiliation: North Middlesex University Hospital, Department of Pathology (Microbiology), London, UK.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Satta
authors.affiliation: North Middlesex University Hospital, Department of Pathology (Microbiology), London, UK.
authors.forename: Sejal
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Parekh
authors.affiliation: North Middlesex University Hospital, Department of Pathology (Microbiology), London, UK.
authors.forename: Hannah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dabrowski
authors.affiliation: North Middlesex University Hospital, Department of Pathology (Microbiology), London, UK.
authors.forename: Hawabibee
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Petkar
keywords: Clostridium difficile; antibiotic policies; diagnosis