C. Diff News and Research

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Researchers explore why common antibiotic prescribed for diarrhea is failing

In the world of superbugs (bacteria that has grown resistant to antibiotics) Clostridioides difficile, a bacterium that causes diarrhea and colitis, is among the most stubborn.

27 Feb 2019

Fecal transplant from certain donors better than others

Fecal microbiota transplantation or stool transplant from a donor is useful for patients infected with the deadly recurrent Clostridium difficile that leads to severe diarrhea, pain and often serious consequences.

22 Jan 2019

Study finds cluster of factors that may help predict C. diff infections

A cluster of factors may help predict which patients are likely to develop Clostridioides difficile, a potentially life-threatening disease commonly known as C. difficile or C. diff, a new study has found.

25 Oct 2018

Xenex LightStrike Germ-Zapping Robots help reduce infection rates at Martin Medical Center

Patient safety is a top priority at Martin Medical Center, which recently announced that it has seen a significant reduction in its Clostridium difficile (C.diff) infection rates since adopting Xenex LightStrike Germ-Zapping Robots as its environmental standard of care.

1 Oct 2018

Hunterdon Medical Center uses LightStrike robot to quickly zap away pathogens

As germs and bacteria become increasingly resistant to cleaning chemicals and antibiotics, Hunterdon Medical Center recently deployed Xenex LightStrike Germ-Zapping Robots that use pulsed xenon ultraviolet light to enhance traditional room cleaning procedures as a key part of the hospital's infection prevention program.

10 Sep 2018

SBPH enhances patient safety with Xenex LightStrike room disinfection robot

St. Bernard Parish Hospital is enhancing patient safety and reducing the risk of healthcare-associated infections with a Xenex LightStrike room disinfection robot.

28 Aug 2018

Study explores relation between hospital occupancy levels and infection risk

Hospitals today spend a lot of time and effort to protect their patients from developing new infections while they're hospitalized - especially the most dangerous types that can threaten their health even more than the problem that sent them to the hospital in the first place.

2 Jul 2018

Germ-fighting robot gives boost to hospital's infection control program

A germ-fighting robot that uses pulsed xenon ultraviolet (UV) light to sanitize rooms at Trinity Hospital is giving a boost to the hospital's infection control program.

5 Jun 2018

Research may pave way for new C. diff antitoxins and anti-cancer drugs

Researchers from the University of California, Irvine and Harvard University have discovered how the Clostridium difficile toxin B recognizes the human Frizzled protein, the receptor it uses to invade intestinal cells and lead to deadly gastrointestinal infections.

14 May 2018

Researchers identify how smaller hospitals can reduce inappropriate use of antibiotics

Researchers at Intermountain Healthcare and University of Utah Health in Salt Lake City have completed a study identifying how community hospitals with fewer than 200 beds can develop antibiotic stewardship programs that work to prevent the growth of antibiotic-resistant organisms, or "superbugs," which are becoming more common and deadly.

30 Apr 2018

The training of Dr. Robot: Data wave hits medical care

The technology used by Facebook, Google and Amazon to turn spoken language into text, recognize faces and target advertising could help doctors combat one of the deadliest killers in American hospitals.

14 Feb 2018

Researchers show association between microbiome and cancer-related blood infections

Cancer patients receive essential medicines, fluids, blood and nutrients through long, flexible tubes called central venous catheters, or central lines.

22 Jan 2018

Study finds link between dietary sugar and increasing bacterial epidemics

The rising frequency and severity of Clostridium difficile infections may be caused by the commonly used food additive, trehalose, according to Nature.

5 Jan 2018

Medicare penalizes group of 751 hospitals for patient injuries

The federal government Thursday lowered a year's worth of Medicare payments to 751 hospitals to penalize them for having the highest rates of patient injuries.

21 Dec 2017

Study: Many patients change their behaviors after suffering repeated bouts of C. diff infections

After suffering repeated bouts of debilitating Clostridium difficile infections, many patients significantly change their behaviors, but some precautions may do little to prevent future infections, according to a first-of-its-kind study.

8 Nov 2017

Germ-killing robots use UV radiation to safeguard patients from health care-associated infections

Germ-killing robots are being enlisted to further safeguard Vanderbilt University Medical Center patients from health care-associated infections.

30 Oct 2017

Antibiotics prescribed by dentists may contribute to serious C. diff infections

Antibiotics prescribed by dentists may contribute to the growing problem of Clostridium difficile (C. diff), a serious and potentially deadly infection that causes severe diarrhea, suggests research presented at IDWeek 2017. And many of those antibiotics are likely unnecessary, researchers note.

6 Oct 2017

Robot emits UV light to destroy infection-causing bugs in hard-to-clean places

Hospitals around the world are looking for new and innovative ways to battle deadly pathogens and kill multidrug resistant organisms that can cause hospital-acquired infections, or HAI.

4 Aug 2017

Scientists reveal key role of excess gut calcium in C. diff infections

It lurks in hospitals and nursing homes, surviving the cleaning crew's attempt to kill it by holing up in a tiny hard shell. It preys upon patients already weak from disease or advanced age.

13 Jul 2017

UAB researchers demonstrate persistence of donor microbes in recipients after fecal transplant

University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers have made the first direct demonstration that fecal donor microbes remained in recipients for months or years after a transplant to treat the diarrhea and colitis caused by recurrent Clostridium difficile infections -- a serious and stubborn cause of diarrhea after an antibiotic treatment for some other illness.

14 Jun 2017