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Clostridium difficile in Immunocompromised Hosts: A Review of Epidemiology, Risk Factors, Treatment, and Prevention.
Clin Infect Dis. 2018 Oct 03;:
Authors: Revolinski SL, Munoz-Price LS
Abstract
Clostridium difficile is a significant pathogen in healthcare today, impacting both hospitalized and community-based patients. Immunocompromised patients experience a high incidence of C. difficile infection, ranging from 6% to 33% in the hematology-oncology population, up to 23% among lung transplant recipients, and a rate of 7.1-8.3 cases per 1000 patient years in patients with human immunodeficiency virus. Recurrence of C. difficile infections among immunocompromised patients is also high, with rates up to 40% in both the hematology-oncology population and solid organ transplant recipients. This higher incidence of C. difficile infection and recurrence is believed to be secondary to frequent antimicrobial use, suppressed immune function, increased exposure to healthcare settings, and higher prevalence of C. difficile colonization. This review summarizes published data describing the epidemiology, risk factors for acquisition and infection, treatment, and prevention of C. difficile in hematology-oncology, solid organ transplant, and human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients.
PMID: 30281082 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]