Pediatric surgery international
-
Pediatr. Surg. Int. · Aug 2014
ReviewThe impact of Clostridium difficile on paediatric surgical practice: a systematic review.
The pathogenic potential of Clostridium difficile in children remains a controversial subject as healthy infants can be colonised by this organism. However recent analyses have clarified that C. difficile is an important enteropath in paediatric populations, particularly in antibiotic-associated diarrhoea. Paediatric surgical patients including those with Hirschsprung's disease (HD) may be especially vulnerable to C. difficile infection (CDI) and complicated C. difficile enterocolitis such as pseudomembranous colitis may require surgical management if refractory to medical therapy. Reports of increasing prevalence and emergence of hyper-virulent strains of C. difficile worldwide prompted an examination of the literature to assess the impact of CDI on current paediatric surgical practise. ⋯ Severe or complicated CDI in both HD and non HD paediatric patients is associated with high mortality and often requires surgical intervention. Although these patient cohorts represent a small number of cases, CDI should be suspected in children presenting with enterocolitis to enable early diagnosis and timely surgical intervention, particularly in patients with co-morbid conditions or preceding antibiotic use.