Association between ribotype and clinical form of enterocolitis with C. difficile in Western Romania: A 2-year study

During the last decade, several changes in the epidemiology, clinical symptoms, and evolution of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) have been reported. The number of diagnosed cases has increased, especially in individuals over 60 years of age. There has also been an increase in the share of severe forms of the disease, the number of patients with recurrent infections and the lethality caused by this condition. The aim of the present study was to determine the incidence of CDI over the past few years; to monitor the bacterial toxin by ribotyping; to observe the migration of circulating toxins; to correlate the ribotyping with the clinical form of the disease; and to correlate the treatment with the ribotyping and the clinical form. Therefore, we performed an observational retrospective study regarding the incidence of CDI at ‘Victor Babeș’ Hospital of Infectious Diseases and Pneumophtisiology of Timișoara, between January 2016 and December 2017. The results revealed that 210 patients were hospitalized with a diagnosis of acute enterocolitis with C. difficile. All patients tested showed C. difficile toxin A/B positivity. In 28 cases, the ribotyping was positive with binary toxin and hypervirulent strain 027. The tested patients were discharged or transferred from various medical/surgical clinics. In the study, we also ascertained the correlation between the clinical form of the disease and comorbidities and pre-hospital treatments as risk factors in the occurrence of the infection. In accordance with the rise of CDI during the last decade, it was possible to observe the increase in the number of infectious recurrences. From this point of view, highlighting of the ribotype in this pathology becomes a primary aspect both by increasing the success rate in curing the disease (with a reduction in the risk of recurrence) and by targeted and non-empirical administration of the antibiotic.