Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is a major health-care concern, and current preventive measures do not target asymptomatic patients. In a Canadian acute care facility, patients were screened for CDI on admission, and extra precautions were taken for carriers (such as isolation). The investigators estimated that 62.4% of expected cases had been prevented by this intervention, and suggest that this strategy could be an important control measure.
References
Longtin, Y. et al. Effect of detecting and isolating Clostridium difficile carriers at hosptial admission on the incidence of C. difficile infections: a quasi-experimental controlled study. JAMA Intern. Med. http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.0177 (2016)
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Leake, I. Targeting asymptomatic carriers of Clostridium difficile infection. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol 13, 314 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrgastro.2016.80
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrgastro.2016.80