Clostridium Difficile Colitis

Clostridium difficile, c diff for short, exists in the intestinal tract and one of the effects is colitis.   It exists in a small minority of people, and normally presents no threat to health. However, should he or she be prescribed a course of antibiotics they may damage the other bacteria in the intestines, allowing the c diff to produce toxins that cause infection, such as clostridium difficile colitis.

Clostridium difficile colitis, otherwise known as antibiotic related colitis, has several  symptoms. These may be loose stools or in more serious cases bloody diarrhoea,abdominal pains and fever. In very rare cases patients also suffer nausea and vomiting, And in the most extreme scenario, the c diff colitis becomes potentially life threatening, with dangerous level of dehydration, low blood pressure,  toxic megacolon and a perforated large intestine.

Symptoms normally occur five to10 days in the patient following the start of the course of antibiotics. About 30 per cent of sufferers do not show these symptoms until after they have finished their antibiotics, usually one to ten days after. There are even those who will not display any symptoms of clostridium difficile colitis until 60 days after they have finished their course.

In order to check whether clostridium difficile colitis has been contracted, the patient's stools are tested and the large intestine examined. Stools may need to be tested  several times to detect the toxins – which cause the infection – released by c diff. Those with only mild cases have the antibiotics which caused the problem stopped. This usually results in a cure. In more serious cases the original antibiotics are still stopped, but new ones capable of curing the  c diff colitis are prescribed.

If very severe cases clostridium difficile colitis  is treated in hospital with intravenous fluids and electrolytes. Blood transfusions may also be required. If the condition is life threatening the surgeon may have to remove the large intestine. In short, the treatment for  clostridium difficile colitis depends on the severity of the condition.