[HTML1] Clostridium dificile (C. dificile) is a type of bacteria that grows in the colon. It is almost always the result of antibiotic use and is usually seen after a hospital stay, although it can strike anyone in the community. The usual treatment is with antibiotics that are effective, but there is a large problem with recurrences that can be worse than the original infection.
There is an alternative treatment available now and another that should be in use by the end of 2011.
In this show Dr. Alan Miller discusses how to avoid this problem and how to treat it. Dr. Gracer discusses use of probiotics to help recovery.
More about Mark A. Miller, PhD
Dr. Miller’s research focuses on the epidemiology, prevention, and treatment of healthcare-associated infections. He has described the rapid emergence of mupirocin resistance among MRSA, chaired the cross-Canada group studying the morbidity, health effects, and mortality from healthcare-associated C. difficile infection (CDI), and headed the Canadian team, which surveyed the reuse of single-use medical devices. He is currently studying CDI in depth, including the recent epidemiology of severe CDI in Canada, CDI prevention using Lactobacillus probiotics, and CDI therapy with novel antibiotics.
He also helped establish the Quebec province-wide guidelines for physicians, dentists, and other healthcare workers infected with blood-borne diseases, and is the Chairman of the Infection Control Working Group of McGill University, which harmonizes infection control policies in all McGill-affiliated health institutions. He has co-authored more than 90 publications and presented more than 100 abstracts. He is past-president of the Association of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Disease of Canada (AMMI-Canada), the professional society of Canadian physicians involved in the prevention, treatment, and research in the field of Infectious Diseases. He currently lives in Montreal, Canada.
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