How long does clostridium-difficile last?

My mother had C-diff twice at a care facility after a hip replacement. So debilitating. She was put in an isolation room to keep it from spreading to other patients (she got it from her roommate). It took a few difficult months to get each bout under control. She recuperated completely each time. The staff warned us that it comes back. Now she is happily home and takes probiotics. We keep everything as clean as we can (warning - the" sterilize" option on these new washing machines can really ruin clothing!).

Everything GrampaHiker said was correct. I was told that it is believed that everyone has this 'bad' bacteri in their body but our immune system keeps it in check. Heavy doses of antibiotic for surgical procedures in the eldery kill both the bad and good bacterias allowing the C-dif to occur. Since antibotics are also given to counter-act this C-dif, sometimes it becomes a vicious circle curing it.

My 97 yr old Aunt developed it and spent a total of six weeks recovering from it. Ten days in the Hospital, almost three weeks at Hospice and then nineteen days at Re-Hab, learning to walk and become continent again. It is a terrible affliction on the elderly and will deplete their strength and energy quickly.

I was totally overwhelmed at the wonderful care she received at Hospice. I always thought that you didn't call them unless it was 'The End' so to speak, but I have been educated. They also do 'Stablization'. They give the prescribed meds, keep the patient comfortable and clean and let their bodies respond. No tubes, no forced procedures. As soon as she stablized, she went to the Re-Hab to finish regaining strength. I highly recommend their facilities.

It is horrible and frustrating! I have to say and I don't know if it's because my mom did lose most of her colon because of it but, she has not had a recurrance. As to antibiotics, my mom was on Levaquin after her spine surgery. I had spoken to doctors and nurses and each time I mention Levaquin they all nodded as if knowing that it has been known to cause c-diff. A friend of mine had the same issue with his mom when she was given Levaquin. I told him to have the doctor put her on another antibiotic and to never have her take Levaquin again. I always note under allergies to meds that mom is allergic to Levaquin. She also takes the probiotic - Culturelle - on a daily basis.

It's a horrible infection. My mother's doctor told me that almost everyone has the spores in their intestines, but people with normal immune systems and plenty of "good" bacteria in their intestines keep it at bay. A weakened immune system coupled with antibiotics (which kills all bacteria - good and bad - in your system) triggers the c-diff spores to take over. Vancomycin and/or Flagyll will help bring it under control, but you also need to replenish your gut with "good" bacteria. This means taking pro-biotics DAILY (Culturelle, Florastor, etc.) during treatment and after the infection has subsided. Of course if antibiotics are needed in the future, it will trigger the infection once again, so be sure your doctor is not one to hand them out for every little thing. It takes a good month to "control" (you won't ever get rid of it completely) with the above, and it's especially hard on the patient - especially the ones that can't get to the bathroom in time. I feel for you. I have dealt with this several times with my mother this year, and it is not fun.

RRccRR8,
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but once a person has the C. Diff infection they never totally get it out of their system. It can be controlled but not eliminated.

My mother caught it while in a NH last year for rehab from a broken hip. She went through a series of urinary tract infections and was given strong antibiotics to handle the UTI’s. The antibiotics wiped out most of the good bacteria in her system which let the bad bacteria multiply. We don’t know for sure how she contacted the C. Diff. spore. It was terrible!! She lost food almost as fast as she took it in. She got very weak from lack of nourishment. She was put in isolation & her doctor tried all sort of things. Finally he sent her to a gastroenterologist who put her on a heavy dosage of vancomycin. This finally controlled the C. Diff. She has been on a maintenance dosage every since then. (BTW, be sure you get the liquid version, the tablet form was over $1,500 per month after insurance).

The gastroenterologist told me that the C. Diff spore is like a tiny egg with a shell. As long as there is enough good bacteria in a person’s system then the C. Diff is dormant. But if something happens & the level of good bacteria decreases it is sort of like breaking an egg shell & the C. Diff spore spills out & starts to multiply.

Unfortunately my mother go pneumonia in early November & she had to have antibiotics for that. So as you can guess, the C. Diff has become active again. She has been back on the heavy dosages of vancomycin for the past 2 ½ weeks & is in isolation again. Visitors have to wear protective gowns & gloves. C. Diff is contagious, but we were told that you are at risk only if you come into contact with an infected person’s stool. We were also told that the alcohol based hand cleaners do nothing for C. Diff. You must wash your hands thoroughly with regular hand soap & hot water.

As you already know C. Diff is terrible!! I pray for you as you try to deal with it.

It can take a very long time. My mom got it after she had back surgery, and was in rehab. She was in and out of the hospital for a couple of months trying to fight it. The last hospital stay they did everything imaginable trying to cure it. It was awful all that she went through. She finally quit eating and then really went down hill. They said we should put her on Hospice and didn't expect her to make it. So, we did that, and moved her to a skilled nursing facility. Once she was there, and they took her off all of the IV's, meds, etc. she slowly started to improve, although the C.diff didn't clear up for 6-8 months. That was almost 3 years ago. She's still with us, but it changed her life, and her family's life forever. It weakened her so much, she was never really able to get back on her feet. She's been confined to a wheelchair ever since. She had some physical therapy for awhile, but didn't really progress as we had hoped. She did improved enough to move from the SNF to Assisted Living. She now has dementia, and is on a steady decline. She was a strong independent 87 year old woman living on her own when this all started, and has had no quality of life for the last almost 3 years. This may sound awful, but I wish God would have taken her then and spared her this existance she has now. I lost my mom back then, and have already done my grieving. I hope your situation turns out better. Just stay on top of them. I'm a little surprised her Dr. didn't test her from the get-go. Take care.

OMG! I feel for you. My mom had contracted C-diff in a hospital as well. Although she had many other issues -- she had gone in initially for spine surgery, contracted the C-Diff, lost her colon which she then had an ileostomy bag. With all of those issues, I don't believe it took 30 days. The hospital had her on Vancomyicin and Flagyl for the C-Diff. You have to be careful as she may become dehydrated and then, you need to be concerned for her kidneys! Someone absolutely needs to be there on a daily basis! My mom was able to have the reversal surgery within a year and no longer has the ileostomy -- THANK GOODNESS!!! I hope this helps!! Good luck and hang in there!

My 94 year old father was admitted to the hospital for leg issues in June. He contracted C-diff at the hospital and died two weeks later. If your mother has been battling it for 30 days, it sounds like she has a good immune system. It takes a cocktail of drugs to kill the bacteria, which has become resistant to many antibiotics. I never should have let my brother take my dad to the hospital. He would still be alive. Stay on your doctor and hospital staff re: this issue. You need to be there every day to make sure your mom is showing signs of improvement. I found that the hospital where my dad was admitted, really didn't seem to care about my dad because he was 94. He was a healthy 94 year old who could drive. He was not feeble. He never should have died. Best of luck to you and your mother.

You were proactive in requesting rehab. I had to do the same thing for my mother's husband. He developed MRSA in a surgical site two weeks after the surgery. He was in the hospital for two weeks, ate little and rarely got out of bed and had become very weak. Since the surgical site was on his foot, he had alot of tenderness to deal with too. The hospital was ready to send him home, I requested an evaluation by a physical therapist that determined he would not be able to even enter the home because of one step into it. We all need to be strong advocates for our aging parents, as many times the medical community forgets about what specific needs might be.