The Relative Frequency of Clostridium Difficile in Fecal Samples of Hospitalized Patients with Diarrhea by ELISA Method

Abstract

Background: The present study was conducted to evaluate the relative frequency of Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) in patients at a university hospital, Isfahan, Iran. Methods: This descriptive, analytic study was conducted on 162 patients hospitalized in various wards of Alzahra Hospital (an 800-bed teaching hospital) of Isfahan during October 2009 to March 2010. Fecal samples of patients who suffered from diarrhea after receiving antibiotics were collected. Microbial analysis was performed to determine the existence of C. difficile. C. difficile toxins (A and B) were detected by ELISA method. The obtained data was statistically analyzed using chi-square test in SPSS at a significance level of P < 0.05. Findings: C. difficile toxins were detected in 36 (22.2%) patients. The frequency of toxins occurrence was significantly higher in men (P ≤ 0.005). In addition, a large number of individuals infected by C. difficile toxins were children under 4 years of age. Ceftriaxone caused many cases of diarrhea in our studied population. Conclusion: In general, based on our results, wrong prescription and antibiotics abuse can cause infection with C. difficile in patients receiving antibiotics. Therefore, the physicians must pay more attention to the recovery of patients with antibiotics.

Keywords

• Clostridium difficile
• Antibiotic-associated diarrhea
• Toxin A and B