Clostridium difficile colitis acquired in the intensive care unit: outcome and prognostic factors

We assessed factors associated with mortality and complicated course in the case of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) acquired in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Retrospective cohort study conducted from 1 January 2002 through 1 January 2012. All patients who acquired CDI in our ICU were included.

Thirty-one patients were included. Twenty patients (65 %) had mild colitis, 8 (25 %) moderate colitis, and 3 (10 %) severe colitis. Initial antibiotherapy was metronidazole (n = 30, 97 %) and vancomycin (n = 1, 3 %). Seventeen patients (55 %) experienced at least one complication: failure of initial treatment (n = 16, 52 %), shock (n = 11, 34 %), need for surgery (n = 1, 3 %) or renal replacement (n = 4, 13 %), or death (n = 8, 26 %). Risk factors of ICU mortality were history of corticosteroids prescription, prolonged ICU stay, low serum albumin level, and high Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score at the time of CDI diagnosis. Factors associated with a complicated course were high Simplified Acute Physiology Score (SAPS II), high SOFA score, and low serum albumin level at the time of CDI onset.

Risk factors of poor outcome in patients with CDI acquired in the ICU are different from those in the general population suffering from CDI. The implementation of treatment algorithms taking into account these factors may reduce complication rates in this specific population.