Epidemiology and Outcomes of Patients With Healthcare Facility-Onset Clostridioides difficile Infection

Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) has become a rising public health threat. Our study aims to characterize the epidemiology and measure the attributable cost, length of stay, and in-hospital mortality of healthcare facility-onset Clostridioides difficile infection (HO-CDI) among patients in the U.S. Military Health System (MHS).

We performed a case-control and cross-sectional inpatient study of HO-CDI using MHS database billing records. Cases included those who were at least 18 years of age admitted to a military treatment facility with a stool sample positive for C. difficile obtained >3 days after admission. Risk factors in the preceding year were identified. Patient case-mix adjusted outcomes including in-hospital mortality, length of stay, and hospitalization cost were evaluated by high-dimensional propensity score adjusted logistic regression.

Among 474,518 admissions within the MHS from 2008 to 2015, we identified 591 (0.12%) patients with HO-CDI and found a significant increase in the trend of HO-CDI over the 7-year study period (P < .001). Patients with HO-CDI had significantly higher hospitalization cost (attributable difference $66,044, P < .001), prolonged hospital stay (attributable difference 12.4 days, P < 0.001), and increased odds of in-hospital mortality (case-mix adjusted odds ratio 1.98; 95% CI, 1.43-2.74).

Healthcare facility-onset Clostridioides difficile infection is rising in patients within the MHS and is associated with increased length of stay, hospital costs, and in-hospital mortality. We identified a significantly increased burden of hospitalization among patients admitted with HO-CDI, highlighting the importance of infection control and antimicrobial stewardship initiatives aimed at decreasing the spread of this pathogen.