Infections Clostridium

Antibiotics effectively kill the bacteria, but nothing in modern medicine could combat the toxicity of the Clostridium spores. The Clostridium infection caused massive inflammation of vital organs, internal hemorrhaging, and death. Experts say there is no telling when or where it may strike again. 

Baverud, V. (2002). Clostridium infections in animals with special reference to the horse. Vet. 

Botulism is a disease caused by ingestion of foods contaminated with Clostridium botulinum (food-borne botulism) or, very rarely, by wound infection (wound botulism) or colonization of the intestinal tract with Clostridium botulinum (infant botulism). The toxins block the release of acetylcholine. Botulism is characterized by generalized muscular weakness, which first affects eye and throat muscles and later extends to all skeletal muscles. Flaccid paralysis can lead to respiratory failure. 

Vancomycin (Vancocin) acts against susceptible gram-positive bacteria by inhibiting bacterial cell wall synthesis and increasing cell wall permeability. This drug is used in the treatment of serious gram-positive infections that do not respond to treatment with other anti-infectives. It also may be used in treating anti-infective-associated pseudomembranous colitis caused by Clostridium difficile. 

Chloroquine (Aralen) is also used in die treatment of extraintestinal amebiasis (see section on Amebicides). Doxycycline is also used to treat infections caused by Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Treponema pallidum, Listeria monocytogenes, Clostridium, and Bacillus anthracis when penicillin is contraindicated. Quinine also may be used for die prevention and treatment of nocturnal leg cramps. 

Martin, A. J., Collins, C. J., Ruddy, R., Drudy, D., Hannan, M. M., and Kyne, L. (2008). Simultaneous control of norovirus and Clostridium difficile outbreaks due to enhanced infection prevention and control measures. /. Hosp. Infect. 68,180-181. 

Weber, D. J., Rutala, W. A., Miller, M. B., Huslage, K., and Sickbert-Bennett, E. (2010). Role of hospital surfaces in the transmission of emerging health care-associated pathogens Norovirus, Clostridium difficile, and Acinetobacter species. Am. ]. Infect. Control 38, S25-S33. 

Bacteria are likely precipitants in many other cases including Escherichia coli, Salmonella species, Shigella species, Vibrio cholerae, and Clostridium difficile. The term dysentery has often been used to describe some of these bacterial infections when associated with serious occurrences of bloody diarrhea. Additionally, acute diarrheal conditions can be prompted by parasites-protozoa such as Entamoeba histolytica, Microsporidium, Giardia lamblia, and Cryptosporidium parvum. Most of these infectious agents can be causes of traveler s diarrhea, a common malady alflicting travelers worldwide. It usually occurs during or just after travel subsequent to the ingestion of fecally-contaminated food or water. It has an abrupt onset but usually subsides within 2 to 3 days. 

Another important necrotizing skin and soft tissue infection is clostridial myonecrosis (gas gangrene). Clostridial myonecrosis can develop spontaneously but most often occurs after trauma. Clostridium perfringens is the most common causative pathogen. 

Stoddart B, Wilcox MH. Clostridium difficile. Curr Opin Infect Dis 2002 15 513-518. 

It has been postulated that Chlamydia may produce a heat shock protein that causes tissue damage through a delayed hypersensitivity reaction. C. trachomatis may also possess DNA evidence of toxin-like genes that code for high-molecular-weight proteins with structures similar to Clostridium difficile cytotoxins, enabling inhibition of immune activation. This may explain the observation of a chronic C. trachomatis infection in subclinical PID. 

Cartmill,T. D. Orr, K. Freeman, R. Sisson, P. R. Lightfoot,N. F. Nosocomial infection with Clostridium difficile investigated by pyrolysis mass spectrometry. J. Med. Microbiol. 1992,37, 352-356. 

Sisson, P. R. Kramer, J. M. Brett, M. M. Freeman, R. Gilbert, R. J. Lightfoot, N. F. Application of pyrolysis mass spectrometry to the investigation of outbreaks of food poisoning and non-gastrointestinal infection associated with Bacillus species and Clostridium perfringens. Int. J. Food Microbiol. 1992,17, 57-66. 

Kyne, L. Merry, C. O Connell, B. Harrington, R Keane, C. O Neill, D. Simultaneous outbreaks of two strains of toxigenic Clostridium difficile in a general hospital. J. Hosp. Infect. 1998,38,101-112. 

Diarrhea Enteric infections Escherichia coli Cryptosporidium Shigella Vibrio cholerae Clostridium difficile Salmonella... 

Krivan HC, Clark GF, Smith DF, Wilkins TD Cell surface binding site for Clostridium difficile enterotoxin Evidence for a glycoconjugate containing the sequence Gal alpha l-3Galbeta l-4GlcNAc. Infect Immun 1986 53 573-581. 

Brito GA, Sullivan GW, Ciesla WP Jr, Carper HT, Mandell GL, Guerrant RL Clostridium difficile toxin A alters in vitro-adherent neutrophil morphology and function. J Infect Dis 2002 185 1297-1306. 

Flegel WA, Muller F, Daubener W, Fischer HG, Hadding U, Northoff H Cytokine response by human monocytes to Clostridium difficile toxin A and toxin B. Infect Immun 1991 59 3659-3666. 

Alcantara C, Stenson WF, Steiner TS, Guerrant RL Role of inducible cyclooxygenase and prostaglandins in Clostridium difficile toxin A-induced secretion and inflammation in an animal model. J Infect Dis 2001 184 648-652. 

Cerquetti M, Luzzi I, Caprioli A, Sebastianel-li A, Mastrantonio P Role of Clostridium difficile in childhood diarrhea. Pediatr Infect Dis J 1995 14 598-603. 

Bouza E, Pelaez T, Alonso R, Catalan P, Munoz P, Creixems MR Second-look cytotoxicity An evaluation of culture plus cyto-toxin assay of Clostridium difficile isolates in the laboratory diagnosis of CDAD. J Hosp Infect 2001 48 233-237. 

Rifaximin Rifamycin Antibiotic Gut bacteria Enteric infection Diarrhea, infectious Hepatic encephalopathy Small intestine bacterial overgrowth Inflammatory bowel disease Colonic diverticular disease Irritable bowel syndrome Constipation Clostridium difficile infection Helicobacter pylori infection Colorectal surgery Bowel decontamination, selective Pancreatitis, acute Bacterial peritonitis, spontaneous Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug enteropathy... 

Zimmerman MJ, Bak A, Sutherland LR Review article Treatment of Clostridium difficile infection. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 1997 11 1003-1012. 

Wilcox MH, Spencer RC Clostridium difficile infection Responses, relapses and reinfections. J Hosp Infect 1992 22 85-92. 

Wenisch C, Parschalk B, Hasenhundl M, Hirschl AM, Graninger W Comparison of vancomycin, teicoplanin, metronidazole, and fusidic acid for the treatment of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea. Clin Infect Dis 1996 22 813-818. 

McFarland LV, Stamm WE Nosocomial Clostridium difficile infection (letter). N Engl J Med 1989 321 190. 

Barbut F, Petits JC Epidemiology of Clostridium difficile-associated infections. Clin Microbiol Infect 2001 7 405-410. 

Nelson DE, Auerbach SB, Baltch AL, Desjar-din E, Beck-Sague C, Rheal C, Smith RP, Jarvis WR Epidemic Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea Role of second- and third-generation cephalosporins. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 1994 15 88-94. 

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