C Diff Research Paper
Clostridium Difficile
Clostridium difficile also known as C-diff in the medical world or C. difficile in the science world is a bacterium that infects the colon of humans. C-diff belongs to the bacteria Domain. Bacteria are unicellular organisms that contain Peptidoglycan in their cell walls. C-diff is a member of the phylum Firmicutes which means it has a Gram-positive stain and a low guanine and cytosine content. C-diff is also classified as a clostridia meaning it has a lack of aerobic respiration and engages in anaerobic fermentation. C-diff is from the Clostridiaceae family, is motile, anaerobic, and spore-forming egetative cells are rod shaped, pleomorphic, and occur in pairs or short chains. It is catalase and superoxide dismutase negative, and produces two types of toxins: enterotoxin A and cytotoxin …show more content…
The response rates to both drugs have been 95% or better. The effectiveness of oral metronidazole and oral vancomycin for the treatment of CDI is well supported in the literature, although only vancomycin has received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for this purpose. Several case reports have noted the use of IV immunoglobulin (IVIG) to induce passive immunity and achieve cure in patients with severe persistent colitis or recurrent disease. Oral metronidazole monotherapy is not an appropriate initial treatment for patients at highest risk, in particular, those who present with significant predictors of disease severity or are of advanced age and have worrisome comorbidities. There are numerous independent risk factors reported for developing symptomatic disease after acquisition of C. difficile. The risk factors that are most consistently identified in the literature include antibiotic exposure, age > 60 years, longer duration of hospital stay, severe underlying disease, and gastric acid
Clostridium difficile also known as C-diff in the medical world or C. difficile in the science world is a bacterium that infects the colon of humans. C-diff belongs to the bacteria Domain. Bacteria are unicellular organisms that contain Peptidoglycan in their cell walls. C-diff is a member of the phylum Firmicutes which means it has a Gram-positive stain and a low guanine and cytosine content. C-diff is also classified as a clostridia meaning it has a lack of aerobic respiration and engages in anaerobic fermentation. C-diff is from the Clostridiaceae family, is motile, anaerobic, and spore-forming egetative cells are rod shaped, pleomorphic, and occur in pairs or short chains. It is catalase and superoxide dismutase negative, and produces two types of toxins: enterotoxin A and cytotoxin …show more content…
The response rates to both drugs have been 95% or better. The effectiveness of oral metronidazole and oral vancomycin for the treatment of CDI is well supported in the literature, although only vancomycin has received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for this purpose. Several case reports have noted the use of IV immunoglobulin (IVIG) to induce passive immunity and achieve cure in patients with severe persistent colitis or recurrent disease. Oral metronidazole monotherapy is not an appropriate initial treatment for patients at highest risk, in particular, those who present with significant predictors of disease severity or are of advanced age and have worrisome comorbidities. There are numerous independent risk factors reported for developing symptomatic disease after acquisition of C. difficile. The risk factors that are most consistently identified in the literature include antibiotic exposure, age > 60 years, longer duration of hospital stay, severe underlying disease, and gastric acid