TABLE 1.
Chronology of C. difficile carriage and infection in our patient and characteristics of the isolates (toxigenicity, susceptibility to metronidazole, and PFGE restriction pattern)
| Date (mo-day-yr) | Sample type | Presence of C. difficile in culture | Assay result for toxin A (sample/isolate) | PCR result for toxins A and B | Metronidazole MIC (mg/liter) | PFGE restriction pattern |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10-13-99 | Stool | + | −/− | ND | 2 | A |
| 11-19-99 | Stool | + | −/− | ND | 0.75 | A |
| 12-6-99 | Stool | − | −/NDa | |||
| 4-29-00 | Stool | − | −/ND | |||
| 6-23-00 | Stool | + | −/− | ND | 2 | A |
| 7-18-00 | Stool | − | −/ND | |||
| 8-1-00 | Stool | − | −/ND | |||
| 8-11-00 | Stool | − | −/ND | |||
| 8-30-00 | Stool | − | −/ND | |||
| 11-25-00 | CSF | + | ND/− | − | 3 | A |
| 11-29-00 | Brain empyema (type a colony) | + | ND/− | − | 2 | A |
| 11-29-00 | Brain empyema (type b colony) | + | ND/+ | + | 0.125 | B |
| 12-1-00 | Stool | + | −/− | ND | 4 | A |
a
ND, not determined.