Burden of Clostridioides difficile infection down in the U.S.

(HealthDay)—From 2011 to 2017, there was a decrease in the estimated national burden of Clostridium difficile infection, according to a study published in the April 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Alice Y. Guh, M.D., M.P.H., from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and colleagues estimated the national burden of C. difficile infection, first recurrences, hospitalizations, and in-hospital deaths from 2011 through 2017 using case and census sampling weights.

The researchers found that the number of C. difficile infections in 10 U.S. sites was 15,461 in 2011 (10,177 health care-associated cases; 5,284 community-associated cases) and 15,512 in 2017 (7,973 health care-associated cases; 7,539 community-associated cases). The estimated national burden of C. difficile infection was 476,400 and 462,100 cases in 2011 and 2017, respectively. With accounting for use of nucleic acid amplification tests, there was a 24 percent decrease in the adjusted estimate of the total burden of C. difficile infection from 2011 to 2017; a 36 percent decrease was seen in the adjusted estimate of the national burden of health care-associated C. difficile infection, while no change was noted in the national burden of community-associated C. difficile infection. A 24 percent decrease was seen in the adjusted estimate of the burden of hospitalizations for C. difficile infection.

"Continued efforts are needed to improve infection prevention and diagnostic and antibiotic stewardship in both inpatient and outpatient settings," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed financial ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.

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