C. Diff News and Research

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High levels of dietary zinc increase susceptibility to Clostridium difficile infections

Too much dietary zinc increases susceptibility to infection by Clostridium difficile - "C. diff" - the most common cause of hospital-acquired infections.

26 Sep 2016

Ancient remedy to treat severe diarrhea becomes effective therapy for multiple recurrent CDI

Modern medicine is taking a new look at an ancient remedy for severe diarrhea as a novel approach to treat a serious gastrointestinal infection.

22 Sep 2016

Beckman Coulter’s new DxH 500 haematology system installed at University of Chester’s Institute of Medicine

Beckman Coulter has installed the first DxH 500 haematology analyser in the UK at the University of Chester’s Institute of Medicine on the Countess of Chester Health Park.

From Beckman Coulter Diagnostics 20 Sep 2016

Allergy-causing immune cells play life-saving role in deadly C. difficile infection

Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have identified immune cells vital for protecting us from potentially fatal C. difficile infection. Surprisingly, those cells are often vilified for their role in causing asthma and allergies. But when it comes to C. difficile, they could be the difference in life and death.

29 Jun 2016

New frozen faecal bank increases chances of curing a chronic health condition

A new frozen faecal bank that could save hundreds of lives and dramatically improve the quality of life of many more has been established at a Portsmouth hospital.

20 May 2016

UC San Diego receives NIH grant to establish interdisciplinary center to combat antibiotic resistance

Researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have received a five-year, $9.5-million award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health to establish an interdisciplinary center to define the systems biology of antibiotic resistance. The program will be led by Bernhard Palsson, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Bioengineering and Pediatrics, and Victor Nizet, MD, professor of pediatrics and pharmacy.

13 Apr 2016

Discovery takes researchers one step closer to preventing C. diff

Exposure to specific antibiotics is linked to the development of certain strains of antibiotic-resistant C. difficile, one of the fastest growing bacteria superbugs, according to a new study published by Stuart Johnson, MD, of Loyola University Health System, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine and the Hines VA Medical Hospital.

5 Feb 2016

Mayo Clinic adds robots to prevent C-diff bacteria

Mayo Clinic has added robots in its fight against Clostridium difficile (C-diff) bacteria. In the U.S., C-diff is one of the most common infections patients can get while receiving care at a health care facility. C-diff can cause a variety of symptoms, including potentially deadly diarrhea. A recent national report shows some progress in reducing C-diff infections; however, more work remains.

20 Jan 2016

Frozen fecal transplantation effective at providing relief to C. diff patients

Frozen fecal transplantation is effective at providing relief to Clostridium difficile (C. diff) patients, according to a new study co-authored by University of Guelph researchers.

18 Jan 2016

Discoveries could lead to development of novel therapies to prevent C. diff infection

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have obtained the crystal structure of a toxin from the bacterium Clostridium difficile ("C. diff") -- the leading cause of hospital-acquired diarrhea in the United States.

12 Jan 2016

Common antibiotics can promote C. diff infections by killing off bile acid-altering microbes

New research from North Carolina State University and the University of Michigan finds that bile acids which are altered by bacteria normally living in the large intestine inhibit the growth of Clostridium difficile, or C. diff. C. diff is a harmful bacterium that can cause painful and sometimes fatal infections.

7 Jan 2016

Bacteriophage therapy: an alternative to antibiotics? An interview Professor Clokie

A phage is a virus that infects a bacterium. People often get very confused about what the difference is between a virus and a bacterium. A virus, like a bacterium, is also a microorganism, but unlike bacteria, it needs to have a host to be able to replicate and propagate.

2 Dec 2015

Loyola professor receives prestigious 2015 Marion Spencer Fay Award

Loyola University Chicago Professor Katherine L. Knight, PhD, one of the nation's leading immune system researchers, has received the prestigious 2015 Marion Spencer Fay Award.

20 Nov 2015

Rebiotix's RBX2660 receives FDA Breakthrough Therapy designation for treatment of recurrent C diff infection

Rebiotix Inc. today announced that U.S. Food and Drug Administration has designated its lead Microbiota Restoration Therapy (MRT) RBX2660 as a Breakthrough Therapy for the treatment of recurrent Clostridium difficile (C diff) infection, a challenging to treat gastrointestinal (GI) infection that causes 29,000 deaths in the U.S. annually.

12 Oct 2015

UV robots help reduce rates of C. diff transmission among cancer inpatients

Robots are capable of all sorts of tasks to help better treat cancer: They connect oncologists to patients remotely, make incisions, staple them shut, deliver "nano" therapies--and they clean rooms. New research from Penn Medicine infection control specialists found that ultraviolet (UV) robots helped reduce the rates transmission of the common bacterial infection known as Clostridium difficile among cancer inpatients - mostly blood cancer patients, a group more vulnerable to hospital-acquired infections - by 25 percent. The interventions also saved about $150,000 in annual direct medical costs.

12 Oct 2015

Mercy open new Endoscopy Suite to promote and practice gastrointestinal health

Mercy Medical Center has announced the opening of a new, state-of-the-art Endoscopy Suite to promote and practice gastrointestinal health. The unique, high-tech suite is located on the 2nd floor of Mercy's Mary Catherine Bunting Center at 345 St. Paul Place. Bunting Endoscopy will be under the direction of Dr. Paul J. Thuluvath, Medical Director of The Melissa L. Posner Institute for Digestive Health & Liver Disease at Mercy.

6 Oct 2015

BD Life Sciences announces FDA clearance for BD MAX Enteric Parasite Panel

BD Life Sciences, a segment of global medical technology company BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company), today announced the availability of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared BD MAX Enteric Parasite Panel for use on the BD MAX System.

From BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) 24 Sep 2015

Probiotics show no benefit in preventing gastrointestinal colonization with drug-resistant microbes in ICU patients

Compared with routine medical care, probiotics administered to critically ill patients in intensive care units showed no benefit in preventing the colonization of drug-resistant microbes in the intestinal tract, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

28 Aug 2015

Major gaps found in existing evidence for best practices for cleaning hospital room surfaces to prevent HAIs

Tray tables, bed rails, light switches, and toilets: All are common vectors for swapping germs between patients and health care workers. While a new systematic overview in this week's Annals of Internal Medicine points to several promising cleaning tactics of these "high-touch surfaces," there's a lack of evidence as to which is the most effective at reducing healthcare-associated infections (HAIs).

11 Aug 2015

Coordinated, two-part approach could help reduce hospital-acquired infections

By coordinating with state health departments and communicating with each other about patients with C. difficile and antibiotic-resistant infections, hospitals, long-term acute-care facilities and nursing homes could reduce the number of such hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) by an estimated 619,000 cases in the next five years, a new Centers for Disease Control 9 (CDC)-led report has found.

5 Aug 2015