Frequency of Clostridium difficile among patients with gastrointestinal complaints
Gastroenterology and Hepatology from Bed to Bench,
Vol. 4 No. 4 (2011),
28 September 2011
https://doi.org/10.22037/ghfbb.v4i4.197
Abstract
Aim: In this study, the prevalence of C. difficile, from patients with gastrointestinal complaints and its association with other enteropathogen microbes were investigated.
Background: Clostridium difficile is an important pathogen associated with outbreaks of pseudomembranous colitis and other intestinal disorders, such as diarrhea.
Patients and methods: Enterotoxin and cytotoxin (toxin A and toxin B) of C. difficile on the patient's stool samples were detected by a double sandwich enzyme-linked Immunosorbant assay technique using a commercial kit (Premier toxins A & B; Generic Assays, Inc., Germany). The microbial isolation and examination was done, according to the standard identification methods.
Results: Out of 356 individuals (57.6 % male and 42.4 % female) the results of C. difficile were positive for 19 patients (5.3 %) and negative for 337 patients (94.6 %) according to the results of C. difficile antigen kit. There was no association between the existence of C. difficile toxin and microbial population or antibiotic usage.
Conclusion: This prevalence study clearly supports the hypothesis of a probable role of C.difficile in developing gastrointestinal complaints in patients with diarrhea. More studies are needed to evaluate the role of C. difficile in these diseases.
- Clostridium difficile
- Gastrointestinal complaints
- Iran
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