title: Fidaxomicin versus Vancomycin in the Treatment of Clostridium difficile Infection: Canadian Outcomes.
abstract: Background. This analysis examined the efficacy of fidaxomicin versus vancomycin in 406 Canadian patients with Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), based on data from 2 randomized, clinical trials. Methods. Patients received fidaxomicin or vancomycin 1. Patients were assessed for clinical response recurrence of infection and sustained clinical response for 28 days after treatment completion. Patients at increased risk of recurrence were subjected to subgroup analyses. Results. Clinical response rates for fidaxomicin (90.0%) were noninferior to those with vancomycin (92.2%; 95% confidence interval for difference: -7.7, 3.5). However, fidaxomicin-treated patients had lower recurrence (14.4% versus 28.0%, p = 0.001) and higher sustained clinical response (77.1% versus 66.3%, p = 0.016). Compared with vancomycin, fidaxomicin was associated with lower recurrence rates in all subgroups, reaching statistical significance in patients with age ≥ 65 years (16.0% versus 30.9%, p = 0.026), concomitant antibiotic use (16.2% versus 38.7%, p = 0.036), and non-BI strains (11.8% versus 28.3%, p = 0.004). Higher sustained clinical response rates were observed for fidaxomicin compared with vancomycin in all subgroups; this was statistically significant in the non-BI subgroup (82.8% versus 69.1%, p = 0.021). Conclusions. In Canadian patients, fidaxomicin was superior to vancomycin in sustaining clinical response and reducing CDI recurrence.
authors.affiliation: St Joseph's Healthcare, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada; Royal Jubilee Hospital, Island Health, Victoria, BC, Canada.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Foothills Medical Centre, Calgary, AB, Canada.
authors.forename: Thomas J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Louie
authors.affiliation: Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, Montreal, QC, Canada.
authors.forename: Karl
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.affiliation: Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC, Canada.
authors.forename: Louis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Valiquette
authors.affiliation: Humber River Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Marvin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gerson
authors.affiliation: Merck, Canada Inc., Kirkland, QC, Canada.
authors.forename: Wendy
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Arnott
authors.affiliation: Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Sherwood L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Gorbach