C-diff killed my friend! - Page 3

blackhole99 · ‎08-22-2013

My elderly aunt had C-diff a few years ago after an illness. My aunt is the type of person who goes too the doctor alot and demands antibiotics as a matter of course. I know because she has abused antibiotics she has to take something heavy duty to get rid of bad bugs, I think she was on Rocephin for the C-diff.

suzyQ3 · ‎03-09-2010

@RainCityWoman wrote:
My mom, who was a dialysis patient, had it for a while when she was in the nursing home. They treated her, and she got over it. I can't imagine how it would kill you, but I suppose anything can if it is in the blood stream or if there is an interaction between it and the antibiotics used.

@RainCityWoman, although anyone can get it, usually from antibiotics or surgery, usually it attacks those who are elderly and/or in nursing homes or the hospital

It definitely can be deadly. From the Mayo Clinic:

Complications

Complications of C. difficile infections include:

Dehydration. Severe diarrhea can lead to a significant loss of fluids and electrolytes. This makes it difficult for your body to function normally and can cause blood pressure to drop to dangerously low levels.
Kidney failure. In some cases, dehydration can occur so quickly that kidney function rapidly deteriorates (kidney failure).
Toxic megacolon. In this rare condition, your colon is unable to expel gas and stool, causing it to become greatly distended (megacolon). Left untreated, your colon may rupture, causing bacteria from the colon to enter your abdominal cavity. An enlarged or ruptured colon requires emergency surgery and may be fatal.
A hole in your large intestine (bowel perforation). This is rare and results from extensive damage to the lining of your large intestine or after toxic megacolon. A perforated bowel can spill bacteria from the intestine into your abdominal cavity, leading to a life-threatening infection (peritonitis).
Death. Even mild to moderate C. difficile infections can quickly progress to fatal disease if not treated promptly.

~Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle~ Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

MamaWick · ‎03-09-2010

Clostridium difficile also killed a friend of mine in 2019. She was in the hospital for several weeks and they just couldn't get it under control. I'm so sorry for your loss.

My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness ~ Dalai Lama XIV

When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace ~ Jimi Hendrix

SeaMaiden · ‎03-10-2010

This has been a very eye opening thread😳 I never heard about this before.

ninjawife · ‎11-15-2011

I've had it twice from being on antibiotic therapy for MRSA. This first time I got it, it was horrible. I was in severe pain and had constant diarrhea. Now I can't take an antibiotic unless I consult with an infectious disease doctor.

Toppers3 · ‎10-25-2016

I had developed a C-Diff. infection from being on antibiotics long-term for several months while trying to treat a long-term skin infection.

I had been on the antibiotics due to trying to treat a stubborn skin infection while under medical care--cellulitis.

I was then hospitalized for the cellulitis so that I could then be treated with IV antibiotics, and the doctor was having my urine and stool checked while I was hospitalized which is what they routinely do anyway, and that is when it was discovered that I had just started to have problems with the C-Diff.

They can tell by monitoring your stool and then by testing it.

Not to give TMI, but I started to have foul and liquid diarrhea, and that's one of the signs that they check for to see if you're having trouble with C-Diff.

I brought the C-Diff. to the hospital with me unfortunately, so they put me in isolation.

I didn't pick it up while a patient at the hospital.

It was from the long-term--months and months of use--use of oral antibiotics.

They caught it immediately when it had just started, and they treated it aggressively both while I was in the hospital, and then when I was released from the hospital.

I had to continue oral medication at home.

conlt · ‎03-16-2010

C Diff is terrible, I am a RN and have had many patients with it, including my mother, It hard to get rid of and wipes people out. A person can get septic and die. I am sorry for the loss of your friend. That is awful. Usually C diff is picked up by someone who is hospitalized on antibiotics.

Drythe · ‎07-09-2011

I am sorry for your loss.

I also lost a good friend to this.

"Animals are not my whole world, but they have made my world whole" ~ Roger Caras

jubilant · ‎06-10-2010

Yes, my Dad had c-diff in the nursing home. He kept getting UTI's that had to be treated. We had to wash our hands if we touched him or fed him or came into contact with things he had touched. It is contagious but we were careful and kept on our schedule of being with him. When I fed him, I wore gloves. He did recover. We didn't get it but I did have some intestinal problems and they did a test...thankfully it wasn't c-diff.