Risk of Death Higher for Bowel Patients with Hospital Infection

According to a study published in the April 19^th issue of Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics, patients admitted to the hospital for treatment of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis have a considerably greater risk of dying if infected with Clostridium difficile, a bacteria that can cause symptoms ranging from diarrhea to life-threatening inflammation of the colon, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are the two forms of inflammatory bowel disease, or IBD. The study found that patients with IBD are six times more likely to die if infected with C. difficile in while in the hospital than those who are not infected.

Researchers looked at data on IBD patients hospitalized between 2002 and 2008 and found that for those infected with C. difficile, the death rate was 25 percent. Those not infected with the bacteria had a considerably lower death rate of 3 percent. Researchers also found that IBD patients infected with C. difficile experienced a longer hospital stay than those not infected.

When a patient is on certain antibiotics, C. difficile bacteria can grow because the harmless bacteria in the body that would otherwise fight C. difficile have been eliminated by the antibiotics. Once C. difficile is discovered in a patient, the antibiotic responsible for the infection should be stopped, and in most cases, another antibiotic should be administered to treat the infection.

When a patient develops an infection in the hospital, many times the hospital can be at fault for failing to keep conditions properly sanitized. Many infections are preventable if proper guidelines are followed by doctors and other hospital staff. If you or a loved one has been seriously injured or died as a result of a hospital-caused infection, call or e-mail the hospital malpractice attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. today. Our experienced medical malpractice attorneys can answer your questions and evaluate your case free of charge. We have fought for clients with Bronx hospital malpractice, Queens hospital malpractice, Brooklyn hospital malpractice, Manhattan hospital malpractice and Long Island hospital malpractice cases.

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