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Clostridium Difficile
Infection with Clostridium difficile most commonly occurs in people who have recently had a course of antibiotics and are in hospital. Symptoms can range from mild diarrhoea to a lifethreatening inflammation of the bowel. No treatment may be needed in mild cases except drinking plenty of fluids. However, treatment with specific antibiotics is needed in more severe cases. What is Clostridium difficile infection?
Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) is a bacterium (germ). It lives harmlessly in the gut of many people. About
3 in 100 healthy adults and as many as 7 in 10 healthy babies have a number of C. difficile bacteria living in their gut. The number of C. difficile bacteria that live in the gut of healthy people is kept in check by all the other harmless bacteria that also live in the gut. So, in other words, some of us normally have small numbers of C. difficile bacteria living in our guts, which do no harm.
C. difficile produces spores (like seeds) which are very hardy and resistant to high temperatures. Spores are passed out with the faeces (stools) of people who have C. difficile in their gut. Spores can persist in the environment (for example, on clothes, bedding, surfaces, etc) for several months or years. The spores can also be spread through the air (for example, when shaking bedclothes when making a bed). They may get on to food, and into the mouth and gut of some people. Spores that get into a human gut develop into mature bacteria. So, this is how some people end up with C. difficile living harmlessly in their gut.
However, if the number of C. difficile bacteria increases greatly in the gut, then it can cause problems. The most common reason why this occurs is due to taking antibiotics.
Antibiotics are the main cause of C. difficile infection
If you take antibiotics for any infection (eg urine infection or skin infection), as well as killing the bacteria that cause the infection, the
Clostridium Difficile
Infection with Clostridium difficile most commonly occurs in people who have recently had a course of antibiotics and are in hospital. Symptoms can range from mild diarrhoea to a lifethreatening inflammation of the bowel. No treatment may be needed in mild cases except drinking plenty of fluids. However, treatment with specific antibiotics is needed in more severe cases. What is Clostridium difficile infection?
Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) is a bacterium (germ). It lives harmlessly in the gut of many people. About
3 in 100 healthy adults and as many as 7 in 10 healthy babies have a number of C. difficile bacteria living in their gut. The number of C. difficile bacteria that live in the gut of healthy people is kept in check by all the other harmless bacteria that also live in the gut. So, in other words, some of us normally have small numbers of C. difficile bacteria living in our guts, which do no harm.
C. difficile produces spores (like seeds) which are very hardy and resistant to high temperatures. Spores are passed out with the faeces (stools) of people who have C. difficile in their gut. Spores can persist in the environment (for example, on clothes, bedding, surfaces, etc) for several months or years. The spores can also be spread through the air (for example, when shaking bedclothes when making a bed). They may get on to food, and into the mouth and gut of some people. Spores that get into a human gut develop into mature bacteria. So, this is how some people end up with C. difficile living harmlessly in their gut.
However, if the number of C. difficile bacteria increases greatly in the gut, then it can cause problems. The most common reason why this occurs is due to taking antibiotics.
Antibiotics are the main cause of C. difficile infection
If you take antibiotics for any infection (eg urine infection or skin infection), as well as killing the bacteria that cause the infection, the