838. Oral Vancomycin Prophylaxis Works!

BACKGROUND: Clostridium difficile infections (CDI) cause approximately 500,000 cases a year with an estimated cost that exceeds $4.8 billion. Despite interventions that addressed environmental disinfection, antibiotic stewardship, and infection control, many institutions continue to have a significant burden of disease. Public reporting and “pay for performance” have increased the impetus for better control of CDI. We describe the use of an unpublished scoring system to assess the risk of CDI with subsequent use of OVP to prevent exsporulation and infection in high-risk groups. METHODS: A large urban hospital in the Chicago area of approximately 400 beds, after following recommended guidelines for prevention of C. difficile, instituted an assessment tool to predict the risk of developing C. difficile infection.This is an observational, cohort study reviewing the pre- and post-implementation of OVP (oral Vancomycin prophylaxis) in hospitalized patients. From January 2017 to December 2017, eligible patients were assessed for risk of C. difficile. The intervention period, from January 2018 to December 2018, we prospectively gave eligible patients oral vancomycin (OVP) 125 mg twice daily if the risk score was 13 or above. No changes in environmental cleaning, antimicrobial stewardship, or restriction of testing were instituted during the periods of enrollment. The analysis was approved by the institutional review board. RESULTS: In 2017, 82 patients had a score of 13 or over. Of the 82 patients, 72 (87.8%) developed CDI. In 2018, 62 eligible patients had a score of 13 or over and were given OVP. Of the 62 patients, 5 (8%) developed CDI. The relative risk comparing C. difficile in ≥13 vs. <13 patients (RR = 19.2652; 95% CI = 7.3656, 50.3899). The tool is associated with a specificity of 88.54% and sensitivity of 94.67%, along with a negative predictive value of 95.51% and positive predictive value of 86.59%. Fisher’s exact test was performed between OVP and no OVP in relation to the development of CDI in high-risk patients (P < 0.01). VRE rates reported on the antibiogram remained consistent throughout the study period. No significant differences in baseline characteristics were noted. CONCLUSION: In institutions where appropriate infection control measures and antibiotic stewardship have been implemented, the use of a prediction tool to guide OVP is effective in preventing C. difficile. [Image: see text] DISCLOSURES: All Authors: No reported Disclosures.