Faculty Collaboration Database

Clostridium difficile in Immunocompromised Hosts: A Review of Epidemiology, Risk Factors, Treatment, and Prevention. Clin Infect Dis 2019 May 30;68(12):2144-2153

Date

10/04/2018

Pubmed ID

30281082

DOI

10.1093/cid/ciy845

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-85064842624 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   77 Citations

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 and up to 23% among lung transplant recipients, and have a rate of 7.1-8.3 cases per 1000 patient-years in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). 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 HIV-infected patients.

Author List

Revolinski SL, Munoz-Price LS

Author

Sara L. Revolinski PharmD Adjunct Assistant Professor in the School of Pharmacy Administration department at Medical College of Wisconsin

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Clostridium Infections
Coinfection
Disease Management
Fecal Microbiota Transplantation
HIV Infections
Humans
Immunocompromised Host
Organ Transplantation
Population Surveillance
Recurrence
Risk Assessment
Risk Factors
Transplant Recipients