Gram-positive Clostridium difficile bacteria
(image courtesy of Janice Carr/CDC)
Gram-positive Clostridium difficile bacteria
(image courtesy of Janice Carr/CDC)
C. difficile
C. difficile is an intestinal bacteria that can cause severe illness and death. It most often arises in hospital settings in patients who've been heavily dosed with broad spectrum antibiotics, which clear the field for these microbes to multiply and attack their hosts.
These
Etopia Media Medical News Network articles, published during October, 2004, report on the spread of these disease in Canadian hospitals, various efforts to develop innovative ways to turn back the tide of
C. difficile infections, and statements from Proctor & Gamble and the Canadian Association of Gastroenterology (heavily financed by the "proton pump inhibitors" (Prilosec®, Prilosec OTC®, and Nexium®) that their prescription drugs have nothing to do with an increased risk of
C. difficile infections or, for that matter, what they call a "weak at best" connection to increased risk of pneumonia.
10-30-04: Canadian Association of Gastroenterology (CAG), heavily financed by the proton pump inhibitor industry, issues a "Position Statement" largely exonerating these profitable pharmaceuticals from any blame in increasing the risk of C. difficile infections in Canada or elsewhere
10-29-04: Calling the findings of JAMA-published study linking the use of "proton pump inhibitors," such as Prilosec®, Prilosec OTC®, and Nexium®, and H2-inhibitors, such as Zantac®, to increased risk of pneumonia "hypothesized," "weak at best," and "not news," Procter & Gamble spokesperson says its product will remain on the market without any formulation or marketing changes
10-29-04: Dr. Clifford McDonald, medical epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, updates the C. difficile story
10-27-04: Zapitall, Inc., a Canadian start-up, is now offering a means of fighting Clostridium difficile bacteria and other DNA-based pathogens using ultraviolet light
10-25-04: Finding new ways to treat C. difficile: As Clostridium difficile bacterium ravages patients in Canadian hospitals, a new antibiotic and a new monoclonal antibody are readied to fight it, while a New Brunswick company offers an ultraviolet means of defending against this dangerous micro-organism
10-4-04: Hospital antibiotic use allows dangerous C. difficile to cause diarrhea and worse; profligate use encourages emergence of drug-resistant, more toxic versions
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