Clostridium Difficile Toxin

It is the clostridium difficile toxin that can lead to infection.  In fact clostridium difficile does not produce a single toxin, but two. And it is these two that makes the sufferer fall ill. The toxins attack the intestinal wall and can lead to ulcers,  severe diarrhoea, colitis, and in a worst case scenario perforated intestines that can prove fatal.

Clostridium difficile resides in a handful of people’s intestines without having any affect on their health. Our intestinal tracts are full of bacteria, and it is these bacteria which prevents the c diff from causing any harm. The problems start when someone who naturally has c diff in their system is prescribed a course of antibiotics.

The antibiotics damage many of the bacteria in the gut. Sometimes these will not cause the c diff to grow, but if they do the toxins will be released which will create all the problems associated with clostridium difficile. 

The clostridium difficile toxin also form spores which can reside outside the body and are contagious. This is one of the reasons why c diff is prevalent in hospitals where patients' natural resistance to disease is already low.

The effects of the c diff toxins need to be tested, firstly to see if the patient has actually caught the infection, and secondly to gauge how much damage has been done. The tests present no danger to the patient   A stool sample examined in a laboratory will check if he is actually suffering from the disease. A colonoscopy may also be performed to check if any damage has been done to the intestinal system by the c diff.

Sometimes merely ceasing the course of the antibiotics may be enough to cure the c diff. Otherwise, a new course of antibiotics, this time capable of wiping out the effects of the clostridium difficile toxins, may be needed. However, if the case is very serious, and the toxins have done their worse, then a colostomy may have to be performed in the operating theatre.