New research provides a snapshot of the populations that most often suffer from C difficile infection (CDI). CIDRAP has the news.
A team led by researchers from AdventHealth Sebring found that “White people accounted for 83.9% of the 216,311 reported US deaths associated with CDI from 1999 through 2023, while Black Americans accounted from 8.1% and Hispanic people 5.5%.” There was also a notable geographic difference, with “83.8% occurring in and around large urban areas and 16.2% in non-metropolitan areas.”
The study author suggested that these differences may stem from the fact that C diff infections are often spurred on by antibiotic use. White and urban populations tend to “have more resources, more access to healthcare utilization, and they are more prone to be exposed to antibiotics or all the other risk factors.”
CDI causes “inflammation of the colon and severe diarrhea and is responsible for estimated 500,000 illnesses and 30,000 deaths in the United States each year.” Antibiotic use makes people “7 to 10 times more likely” to acquire an infection.
CDI death rates have also fallen since 2015 following a spike over the decade prior. The decline “can be attributed in part to better treatment options, such as fidaxomicin and fecal microbiota transplantation.” Improved infection prevention and control and antimicrobial stewardship programs will help further bring the rates of infection down.
