United States: A major cause of complaint and mortality in the United States, particularly for the senior and rehabilitated, is Clostridium difficile, orC. difficile. According to a recent study, vancomycin, the main antibiotic used to treat it, may be losing its effectiveness against this deadly infection.
The Growing Threat of C. difficile
Professor of drugstore practice and translational exploration at the University of Houston College of Pharmacy and studyco-authorDr. Kevin Garey said,” It’s an intimidating development in the field ofC. diff, as there are only two recommended antibiotics. ”And the second-line drug is fidaxomicin (Dificid)
Declining Effectiveness of Vancomycin
According to a university news release, Garey stated, “If antimicrobial resistance increases in both antibiotics, it will complicate the management of C. diff infection leading us back to a pre-antibiotic era.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that in 2017, C. difficile caused the illness and death of over 22,3,900 Americans. The bacteria causes gastroenteritis, an infection of the intestine that can result in diarrhea, discomfort in the abdomen, toxic megacolon (severe inflammation of the colon), sepsis, and even death.
It’s particularly lethal for older persons who are feeble or those with compromised immune systems.
Implications for Patient Care
According to Garey and colleagues, vancomycin has been the preferred antibiotic for treating C. difficile for a long time, with its use increasing by 54% over the last six years.
However, it might not be as effective against the bacteria: Vancomycin was able to treat over 100% of C. difficile patients in the early 2000s, but more recently, the Houston team reported that the cure rate had fallen to 70%.
The data they examined came from a multi-center research that monitored the vancomycin resistance levels in 300 C. difficile bacteria samples taken from persons who had received treatment between 2016 and 2021.
Addressing Antibiotic Resistance
The scientists recently published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases that 34% of the tested C. difficile samples “exhibited reduced vancomycin susceptibility.”
According to lead research author Anne Gonzales-Luna, “this weakening of vancomycin was associated with lower 30-day sustained clinical response and lower 14-day initial cure rates in the studied patient cohort.” She works at the university as a research assistant in the departments of translational research and pharmacy practice.