By Healthcare Facilities Today

The rate of Clostridium difficile infections in U.S. hospitals nearly doubled in the decade between 2001 and 2010 although mortality from the disease was variable, according to a  researcher at the recent Interscience Conference on Anti-Microbial Agents and Chemotherapy in Denver, Colo. 

According to an article on MedPageToday.com, a study based on hospital discharge data showed the rate of C. difficile infection in 2001 was 4.5 per 1,000 hospital admissions in 2001, but rose to 8.2 per 1,000 admissions in 2010. The study was presented Kelly Daniels, PharmD, of the University of Texas at Austin.

Over the 10 years, the peak death rate from C. difficile infection was 8.7% in 2003 while the lowest rate was 5.6% in 2009, Daniels told reporters at the conference.

The analysis was not entirely surprising and means that C. difficile "is still a major problem and is still on the rise," she said. While the increase in case rates might have started to slow down in 2008 through 2010. Daniels said "we still haven't seen a decline."

The finding ought to be "headline news," MedPageToday.com quoted Michael Schmidt, PhD, of the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, as saying. Schmidt was not part of the study but who moderated a press conference at which some details were presented.

Read the article.