Poop Pills Summary

Clostridium difficile is a Gram-positive, spore-forming, rod-shaped bacillus that is renowned for being the leading cause of hospital-acquired diarrhea in adult patients. C. difficile is present as normal intestinal flora within 3% to 5% of healthy people2, while its spores are ubiquitous in the environment, especially in hospital settings. It grows at an optimal temperature and pH of 37ºC and 6.5–7.5 respectively.1 It is an obligate anaerobic as it thrives in the absence of oxygen. It is highly motile with the presence of peritrichous flagella, which are evenly spread out along its surface. As briefly mentioned above, this evolving pathogen produces endospores. The bacterium produces dormant spores, which are extremely hardy and resistant to antibiotics, the host’s innate immune system, and once shed into the environment through the host’s feces, they are resistant to unfavorable aerobic conditions3 as well as several types of bleach-free disinfectants, which are commonly used in hospitals.3 The spores will germinate under the favorable conditions of the intestinal tract, resulting in the multiplication of vegetative cells, colonizing in the gastrointestinal tract. The vegetative cells release two powerful exotoxins upon adherence to the epithelial cells of the GI tract. Pathogenic strains of C. difficile produce two exotoxins: toxin A and toxin B. Toxin A is an enterotoxin that causes fluid excretion, resulting in fluid accumulation and watery diarrhea. Toxin B is a potent

Clostridium Difficile (C-Diff) is considered one of the most common infections a patient can acquire within their hospital stay. It is estimated that C-Diff is responsible for 337,000 infections and 14,000 deaths a year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2012). Working in the emergency department (ED), I have witness first hand how debilitating this gastrointestinal infection can be. Patients are admitted to the ED for having severe watery diarrhea, abdominal pain, and fever. Elderly patients are at increase risk for sepsis and dehydration related to recurrent infections. Appropriate management and education of C-Diff is optimal for patient survival and decrease contamination across lifespan.

Many Americans die each year from complications connected to Clostridium difficile. It can ill a significant number of individuals as well as animals. The Clostridium difficile infection is the result of poor hygiene, misuse, overuse of antibiotics and an aging population. In this paper I will be discussing the following topics, what clostridium difficile means, what it causes, signs and symptoms, complications, treatment and the prevention.

The healthcare professional can expect to encounter various conditions within their scope of experience. Clostridium difficile represents one of the most common and challenging nosocomial infections that can cause life-threatening complications such as hypervolemia, sepsis, pain, and peritonitis (Grossman and Mager 155). The recognition, diagnosis, treatment and inhibition of transmission of this bacterium are imperative in order to limit infection and prevent death.

Ingestion of the endospore causes infection. Once it reaches the preferred anaerobic environment of the gut, the endospores germinate and begin releasing toxins A and B (Burns & Minton 2011). The presence of C. difficile does not necessarily mean infection. A patient can be positive for C. difficile but have normal stool, which means there is colonization without infection. Patients who have the C. difficile pathogen without experiencing any symptoms allow it to be passed along undetected which contributes to the ongoing spread to others. Only when toxin A and toxin B are released at suitable levels does C. difficile become pathogenic to humans. Once infected, typical symptoms include watery diarrhea, abdominal pain, colitis, fever, and fecal leukocytes. Moderate to severe Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) consist of profuse diarrhea, abdominal distention, leukocytosis, systemic inflammatory response, pseudomembranous colitis, megacolon and death (Sunenshine & McDonald, 2006). With the combination of a highly resilient endospores, and asymptomatic carriers, this allows C. difficile to persist in the environment and spread to patients with compromised immune systems, or older patients who have a high risk of contracting CDI with a higher severity than healthy adults (Laffan, Bellantoni, Greenough, Zenilman, 2006).

Clostridium difficile, a nosocomial pathogen, is of critical importance. By 2010 it was the most prevalent healthcare-related pathogen globally [1], accounting for 20-30% of antibiotic-associated diarrheal cases in healthcare settings [2]. Symptoms of C. difficile infection (CDI) are significant and include severe diarrhea and dehydration. In more serious cases, CDI can result in pseudomembranous colitis, bowel perforation, sepsis and even death [3, 4].Beyond serious impact upon patients, CDI is costing multiple billions of dollars in hospital care in the United States alone [5]. Clearly the need exists to identify and characterize the infection and toxicity pathways of C. difficile.

Clostridium difficile is a spore forming, anaerobic, toxin-producing, gram-positive bacillus that is the most common cause of nosocomial, antibiotic-associated diarrhea (15-25%).1,2,3 The pathogenesis of C. difficile-associated diarrhea (CDAD) is the result of broad spectrum antibiotics, such as clindamycin, flouroquinolones or ceftriaxone, which reduces the population of normal bowel flora and allowing for an overgrowth of C. difficile.1,2 The toxins synthesized by C. difficile, A and B, lead to the inflammation and damage of the intestinal mucosa creating the symptoms of C. difficile infection (CDI). These symptoms can range from asymptomatic carriers, to mild diarrhea to sudden and occasionally deadly colitis. The clinical practice guidelines for the treatment of CDAD recommends the use of metronidazole (MET) and vancomycin (VAN) that is dependent upon the severity of the CDI.1,2,3

Clostridium difficile is a gram-positive bacterium which causes diarrhoea. It also known as antibiotic associated diarrhoea and also pseudomembranous colitis. The bacterium secretes large protein toxin that also causes toxic mega colon. Clostridium difficile is caused by when a person is given one of the following antibiotics: Cephalosporin, penicillin (particularly Ampicillin or Amoxicillin), Clindamycin and Fluoroquinolone. The antibiotic will remove the entire normal flora in the colon. The lack of normal flora will make the person vulnerable to infection especially to Clostridium difficile because Clostridium difficile produces hardy spores

These single celled tube-like organism finds a home in the gut of every human during their lifetime. If the person affected does not have the proper bacterial flora to balance Clostridium difficle, the bacteria will manifest itself. The bacteria produces a toxin that breaks down the outer and inner linings of the small and large intestine causing the condition, Clostridium difficle Colitis. The impaired intestine will cause the body to have up to 20 bowel movements a day. The bowel matter will eventually turn to water and blood, causing extreme malnourishment and dehydration. The bacterial infection, if not intervened will cause morbidity. According to Roos (2015), the CDC reported there are half- million cases and thirty-thousand deaths each year in the United States. Clostridium difficle is one of the world’s leading causes of deaths in assisted living facilities (Roos,

Many people take the efficiency of their digestive system for granted. Imagine having a bowel disorder that impacts your everyday life, by affecting your weight and hygiene, impacting the foods you are able to eat, decreasing your energy levels, causing severe colicky pain, at times making you feel awkward around others, and suddenly sending you to the bathroom in the middle of important events. Not only does it uncomfortably affect those aspects of a person’s life, but frequently becomes a serious health issue that if uncontrolled may land you in the hospital. Imagine having to take expensive medications everyday that are supposed to keep you from having your disorder flare up, but then those medications cause uncomfortable

Clostridium difficile infection is a suprainfection cause by prolong use of antibiotics. Board spectrum antibiotic such as Penicillins, clindamycin, and cephalosporins are the antimicrobial drugs most commonly associated with C difficile colitis. According to Owens, in his research, C. difficile is primarily acquired in hospitals. Spread by spores, it can colonize a patient’s gut after helpful gut bacteria are killed by antibiotics. Its toxins can cause severe diarrhea and colitis, and it can be fatal (Owens 2013). On the other hand Kim in his research agreed clostridium difficile infection has been considered a hospital-acquired infection. However, a recent population-based study found 41% of CDIs were actually community acquired. It is becoming apparent that community acquired CDI affects populations previously thought to be at low risk; younger patients and patients who had no exposure to antibiotics in the 12 weeks before the infection. Thus, it is necessary to advocate and teach patient about

Scientist want to know how they can treat clostridium difficile using human feces. Currently some physicians are using nasal tubes to run to patients intestines feeding them healthy microbes via enemas. Different scientist are finding other ways to treat clostridium difficile by using human feces in a pill that can be delivered to the intestines. This is very beneficial for patients that can not use the direct nasal tube.

In the United States, Clostridim difficile has cost the healthcare system possible more than 1 billion dollars annually, and in developing countries it is the leading cause of illness that occurred in hospitals; with cases that have C. difficile link to it is estimated to cause over 3600 dollars in health care fees (Heinlen and Ballard, 2010). According to data that was reported by Center for Disease Control and Prevention, C. difficile start from a low of 31 cases out of 100,000 people per yer in 1996 to an increase in 2003 with 61cases out of 100,000 people per year (Heinlen and Ballard, 2010). In the United States alone, it have been estimated that 500,000 cases have occurred per year (Heinlen and Ballard, 2010). C. difficile infections (CDI) have also increased by 25% with an estimate of 15,000- 20,000 people die per year in

Doctors have found a way to treat and/or cure clostridium difficile by putting feces from a healthy person into a pill. Clostridium difficile, also known as C-diff, affects about 500,000 people per year, killing 14,000. Symptoms include nausea, diarrhea, and cramping that can often be crippling. There are antibiotics that can kill the germ, but they take down some of the good bacterias too. Fecal transplants can restore the healthy bacteria, but are given in expensive, painful procedures called colonoscopies. Enemas have also been attempted, but the treatment is not always effective.

Poop pills are the future of curing c-diff, and it's already starting to help patients. There have been several other methods to curing c-diff, but most were expensive, painful, and unreliable. Poop pills aren’t really made of poop, just “stool bugs.” The inventor of this pill has cured about thirty people already.