My mom is 47 years old. She was diagnosed with C Diff after she was on an antibiotic for a tooth infection. Before she was diagnosed with C Diff, she was having horrible cramps, felt sick to her stomach and diarrhea up to 16xs a day. She thought she was dealing with diverticulitis (because that's what she was supposedly diagnosed with years prior) now they're saying if she had that it would've shown up on her MRIs and what not. So she must have been misdiagnosed and just has been dealing with C Diff this whole time. Finally, after a stool sample she was diagnosed with C Diff. She was then put on Flagyl (for 16 days 4xs a day) she continued to have diarrhea for weeks. Her doctor then prescribed her Vancomycin (she was on that for 14 days.) she is still having Diarrhea but not as much (mostly just in the morning)...(she has been on very strong probiotics this whole time as well so that's good) she just ordered another stool sample kit to see if she still tests positive for it. If she does, I believe she will be getting the fecal macrobiotic transplant. But in the mean time should I be steering clear of her? She is not in the hospital. She mostly stays at home and tries to go about her normal life. But my concern is, I have a one year old daughter. I'm nervous she will somehow get it and or I get it and pass it to her and others. I'm just confused on what to do. I read so much about how contagious it is but then other sites say it's not likely to get it from others by physical contact. Any advice is appreciated!!
upallnight - I'm sorry to hear that it almost killed your husband! It's such a scary bacteria!! So glad your daughter recovered well when she had it though!
Partsmom, I can't imagine what he must've been going through with the Lymphoma I'm sorry to hear that! My dad also has Lymphoma and I have seen how horrible it can be!! I'll keep your husband in my prayers! Also, I totally agree about not taking antibiotics! I'm trying very hard to not have to have my daughter on anything for this. The doctor said since she's not showing symptoms they're not going to treat it. Just have basic cleanliness. Wash hands after diaper change etc. Her Pediatrician is also saying that she has colonized C Diff but if she was to be on an antibiotic then that would probably bring out the symptoms of C Diff. Im not exactly sure what to do at this point since she tests positive but has zero symptoms.
Genesis1 I appreciate you giving me the heads up on the Gluten! My mom is gluten intolerant already so she stays away from gluten anyway. But that was a good thought I know those symptoms can be similar!
Wow, you really have your hands full. My mom - 80 years old at the time - had c diff 5 times during the first 6 months of 2008. She did come through it and is doing OK at age 91, so do not lose heart. We took basic precautions, but I don't remember turning my mom's house into a quarantine zone. What ultimately knocked it out were two things. 1. an actual cycling of the vancomycin and possibly one other more mainstream antibiotic - it was 10 years ago, but maybe you can look it up online. Vancomycin is about the most powerful antibiotic you can use. I think it was done over something like 3 weeks with it eventually tapering off. This was effective because you really have to make sure it is gone, otherwise it will come back - and each recurrence is supposedly more resistant. The other was a probiotic called Dr. Ohira's probiotic. It is pretty pricey, but available at Sprouts. It does not require refrigeration, which is nice. Anyway, this was recommended by a national radio host, Dr. Bob Martin. I am convinced that this probiotic saved her life, and she still takes it today. Again, as is so often the case you have to advocate for you and your loved ones - the doctors will just keep pushing antibiotics and you don't want to develop a resistant to those. Best wishes. I really thought my mom was in trouble with this, but it did clear up and she has not had a recurrence in 10 years.
They are the same products that I have seen in hospital rooms and they will kill C-diff.
His C-diff reared its ugly head after antibiotics to help heal up leg ulcers. For the C-diff he had two rounds of Flagyl, then two rounds of Vancomycin, then finally a combination of Flagyl, Vancomycin and a third antibiotic that I do not recall. The triple antibiotic therapy finally kicked it. Total time elapsed for this adventure was about 6mo with part of it spent in the hospital and part in rehab.
Ask her pediatrician what he/she thinks...is taking probiotics an option (or eating yogurt)? Get their input. Stress good hygiene habits (easier said than done at that age). Definitely keep things disinfected/clean - bleach, etc.
Now I believe many radiologists will miss it in the upper digestive tract even on an MRI. I had a CT scan of my upper abdomen for another reason and the interventional radiologist said I had numerous diverticula in the upper small intestine. he said he saw them when most others don't because he was trained by someone who had a special interest and showed him how to look for them.
So it is possible that both your Mom and I have had them for many years. I tested negative for Cdiff and just put up with it but if I need to go out take a couple of Immodium which stops it for a couple of days, i do also wear Depends in case of leakage.
As far as staying away from your Mom as others have siad she does practise good hygiene and you are healthy young woman so I wouln't worry about your self but I would avoid eating or drinking at her house use a hand sanitizer as soon as you leave the house and before touching you car just to be safe. Definitely keep your daughter away till Mom gets a clean bill of health. no sense in inviting trouble.
This must be worrying for you, with your little daughter to think of; but on the other hand... Setting up complex infection barriers now is a bit like shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted, isn't it? If it were that easily transmissible you'd already be infected, surely.
Another reason people in hospitals and nursing homes are especially vulnerable is that larger numbers of them are taking antacids and PPIs, which are marvellous at protecting the stomach from ulcers and relieving symptoms of heartburn and indigestion but disastrous when it comes to what everybody's stomach acid is there for, namely killing pathogens. You and your daughter, both healthy young humans, are wandering around with a bug-killing bath of hydrochloric acid guarding your gut, which is likely to be a lot more effective than disinfectant wipes or hand gel.
If your daughter or you are under the weather with a cold or anything like that then perhaps avoid contact then. Other than that, keep your sense of proportion - we are all of us carrying inert infections all the time, there are thousands upon thousands of people incubating C diff, MRSA and all of the other terror-bugs, and most of the time you will never know who they are. At least you know your mother does practice good hygiene!
If you are around mom - suggest you wash hands frequently especially before you leave and maybe change clothes when you arrive home.
I worked in home health care for a lot of years and had patients with c-diff and I never had a problem with it.
Just use basic precautions like hand washing. It's not airborne, you and your family can't catch it by being in the same room as your mom. Even if she sneezed on you you wouldn't catch it. You would have to come into contact with her fecal material and inadvertently ingest it via contaminated food or poor bathroom hygiene.
Just one quick thought, taking probiotics and antibiotics at the same time can be a problem. Double check with the pharmacist about the timing of the two medications. I was told not to take Probiotics within a couple hours of antibiotics
For your child, I would talk to your doctor. If it were me, I would stay safe and wait until Mum's stool tests were clear for her to visit, I would continue to visit without the baby. Hygiene is so important to prevent the spread and a child that age is putting everything in their mouth. A flip side to that, my Granny had Chronic Leukemia, when my children had their Polio vaccine, we had to stay away from her as the baby could shed the vaccine and make Granny sick. We had to wait 6 weeks after each one before visiting. I could visit, just not the child.
Speaking as someone who has chronic IBS, your Mum's digestive tract may not go back to 'normal'. It may remain sensitive to various foods and medications, stress plays a big role in digestive health too.