Hospital-associated Clostridium difficile infection and reservoirs within the hospital environment

Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is a leading cause of hospital-associated infections. Antibiotic stewardship, environmental disinfection, and reduction of transmission via health care workers are the major modes of CDI prevention within hospitals.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of the environment in the spread of CDI within hospital rooms. Bed tracing of positive-CDI inpatients was performed to detect the strength of association to specific rooms. Environmental cultures were conducted to identify adequacy of environmental C difficile (CD) spores. Whole-genome sequencing was performed to evaluate the degree of CD relatedness.

Bed tracing performed for 211 CDI patients showed a limited list of high-burden rooms. Environmental cultures for surfaces disinfected with a sporicidal agent were almost entirely negative, whereas the floors were positive for CDI in 15% of the studied patient rooms. Whole-genome sequencing did not detect any close genetic relatedness.

Unlike in an outbreak setting, bed tracing did not yield conclusive results of room reservoirs. The C diff Banana Broth culture was inexpensive, sensitive, and easy to incubate under aerobic conditions. Sporicidal disinfectants were effective in eliminating CD from the environment. CD spores were found on floors and hard-to-clean surfaces.