|Videos|April 12, 2017

How Aggressive Should Clostridium difficile Prevention Strategies Be?

Gonzalo Bearman, MD, MPH, professor of medicine, and hospital epidemiologist, Department of Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases, Virginia Commonwealth University, discusses the aggressiveness of infection prevention strategies to stop Clostridium difficile outbreaks.

Gonzalo Bearman, MD, MPH, professor of medicine, and hospital epidemiologist, Department of Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases, Virginia Commonwealth University, discusses the aggressiveness of infection prevention strategies to stop Clostridium difficile outbreaks.

Interview Transcript (slightly modified for readability)

“I think the aggressiveness of a [Clostridium] difficile strategy should really reflect the degree at which C. difficile is a problem in a healthcare system. There is a range of strategies that could be done.

Certainly, for an institution that has a high level or high rate of C. difficile infection, some authorities, some infection preventionists, want to be more aggressive, not only with isolation but also with screening patients on admission to see whether or not they’re colonized with C. difficile, [so as] to isolate them, properly.

That’s not necessarily the standard of care, but [it’s] certainly done by some institutions.”


Related to this article

Peggy Lillis Foundation Will Honor C diff Advocates at Annual Gala
The Peggy Lillis Foundation will host its 17th Annual Changing the Odds Gala this month in New York City, and it will include a casino, fellowship amongst the C diff community, and an award ceremony honoring a physician-scientist, philanthropist, a researcher, and a patient advocate for their contributions to C difficile awareness, treatment, and prevention.
Asymptomatic C difficile Colonization in Infants Doesn’t Mean Benign
A new study in infants challenges the long-standing belief about the pathogen’s effects in the youngest pediatric population. Senior author Joseph Zackular, PhD, provides insights around his work including how it reshapes gut development and offers potential intervention strategies to shield neonates.
How The Food Safety Surveillance Infrastructure Works in the US
In the first episode of our new series looking at the food safety network, Lynette Johnston, PhD, offers insights into how the federal government surveillance infrastructure operates and how epidemiologists serve as food detectives in determining bacterial pathogens and potential foodborne outbreaks.