Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Prevalence and risk factors for Clostridium difficile colonization in dogs and cats hospitalized in an intensive care unit.
- Journal:
- Veterinary microbiology
- Year:
- 2008
- Authors:
- Clooten, Jennifer et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Clinical Studies · Canada
Plain-English summary
A study looked at how common a bacteria called Clostridium difficile is in dogs and cats that are hospitalized in an intensive care unit (ICU). Researchers took samples from the animals when they were admitted and every few days after that. They found that about 18% of the animals had C. difficile, with most of those strains being able to produce toxins that can cause illness. The study also noted that animals who had received antibiotics before coming to the hospital or were given immunosuppressive medications while there were more likely to develop this bacteria. Additionally, getting C. difficile while in the ICU was linked to having diarrhea. Overall, the findings suggest that C. difficile can be a concern for pets in intensive care, especially if they have certain risk factors.
Abstract
Clostridium difficile is the most common cause of hospital- and antimicrobial-associated diarrhea in hospitalized humans however the role of C. difficile in diarrhea in dogs has not been defined. A prospective study of C. difficile colonization in dogs and cats was conducted in a veterinary teaching hospital intensive care unit (ICU). Rectal swabs were taken from patients upon admission to the ICU and every third day of hospitalization until discharge or death. C. difficile was isolated from 73/402 (18%) animals; 69% of isolates were toxigenic. Community-associated colonization was identified in 39/366 (11%) of animals that were sampled at the time of admission, while C. difficile was subsequently isolated from 27 of the remaining 327 (8.3%) animals that had a negative admission swab. C. difficile was isolated from seven other dogs during hospitalization, but the origin was unclear because the admission swab was not collected. Administration of antimicrobials prior to admission and administration of immunosuppressive drugs during hospitalization were risk factors for hospital-associated colonization (P=0.006, OR 4.05, 95% CI 1.4-10.8). Acquisition of C. difficile during hospitalization in the ICU was associated with the development of diarrhea (P=0.004). Two ribotypes, one toxigenic and one non-toxigenic, predominated.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18164560/