TABLE 2.
Results of C. difficile assaysa
| Patient group, parameterb | No. (%) of specimens with Bristol score of: |
P value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 6 | 7 | ||
| All inpatients | n = 286 | n = 1,063 | n = 1,656 | |
| Positive C. difficile assay | 43 (15.0) | 144 (13.6) | 177 (10.7) | 0.031 |
| Assay used for diagnosis of CDI | ||||
| EIA | 19 (6.6) | 81 (7.7) | 106 (6.4) | 0.52 |
| NAAT | 24 (8.4) | 63 (5.9) | 71 (4.3) | 0.012 |
| C. difficile acquisition | ||||
| Community onset | 20 (7.0) | 64 (6.0) | 63 (3.8) | 0.007 |
| Hospital-onset CDI | 12 (4.2) | 51 (4.8) | 84 (5.1) | 0.80 |
| NHSN CDI criteria not met | 8 (2.8) | 26 (2.4) | 27 (1.6) | 0.21 |
| Repeatedly positive specimen within 8 weeks | 3 (1.0) | 3 (0.3) | 3 (0.2) | 0.047 |
| Patients with hospital-onset CDI | n = 12 | n = 51 | n = 84 | |
| Severe CDIc | 9 (75.0) | 34 (66.7) | 51 (60.7) | 0.22 |
| Complications | ||||
| Treatment in ICU | 1 (8.3) | 2 (3.9) | 3 (3.6) | 0.74 |
| Colectomy performed for CDI | 0 (0) | 1 (1.9) | 1 (1.2) | 0.85 |
| All-cause in-hospital mortality | 0 (0) | 1 (1.9) | 5 (4.9) | 0.39 |
| Any complication | 1(8.3) | 4 (7.8) | 9 (10.7) | 0.85 |
a
Specimens were obtained from January to October of 2013. Semiformed stools are defined as those with Bristol scores 5 or 6; liquid stools are defined as those with a Bristol score of 7.
b
EIA, enzyme immunoassay; NAAT, nucleic acid amplification test; CDI, C. difficile infection; ICU, intensive care unit.
c
Criteria modified from Zar et al.; other causes of severe illness not excluded.