Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea in dialysis patients

Oh, Sook Eui; Lee, Seung Min; Lee, Young Ki; Choi, Sun Ryoung; Choi, Myung Jin; Kim, Jwa Kyung; Song, Young Rim; Kim, Soo Jin; Park, Tae Jin; Kim, Sung Gyun; Oh, Jieun; Suh, Jang Won; Yoon, Jong Woo; Koo, Ja Ryong; Kim, Hyung Jik; Noh, Jung Woo

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Dialysis patients have impaired host defense mechanisms and frequently require antibiotics for various infective complications. In this study, we investigated whether dialysis patients have greater risk for Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea (CDAD).
METHODS
During the 4-year study period (2004-2008), 85 patients with CDAD were identified based on a retrospective review of C difficile toxin assay or histology records. Nosocomial diarrheal patients without CDAD were considered as controls (n=403). We assessed the association between renal function and the prevalence and clinical outcomes of CDAD.
RESULTS
There was a significant difference in the prevalence rate of chronic kidney disease (CKD) between CDAD and non-CDAD patients (P<0.001). Sixteen patients (18.8%) of the CDAD group were treated with dialysis, whereas 21 patients (5.2%) of the non-CDAD group were treated with dialysis. There was a significant association between renal function and CDAD in patients on dialysis [odds ratio (OR)=4.44, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.19-8.99, P<0.001], but not in patients with CKD stage 3-5 (OR=1.10, 95% CI 0.63-1.92, P=0.73). In multivariate analysis, CKD stage 5D was an independent risk factor for the development of CDAD (OR=13.36, 95% CI 2.94-60.67, P=0.001).
CONCLUSION
Our data indicate that dialysis patients might be at a greater risk of developing CDAD, which suggests that particular attention should be provided to CDAD when antibiotic treatment is administered to dialysis patients.