A study published in Epidemiology & Infection details the predictors of treatment failure among Clostridium difficile infection patients receiving metronidazole therapy.
Researchers examined patients hospitalized at a hospital from January 2013 to December 2014. Among 314 patients with C. diff infections receiving metronidazole therapy, 62 showed treatment failure and 105 received antibiotics concurrently.
Independent predictors of treatment failure included:
• Underlying dialysis
• Fever greater than 38.3 degrees Celsius
• Low median serum albumin levels
• Concurrent use of antibiotics
"These results suggest that metronidazole should be used in mild cases of CDI only after discontinuation of the offending antibiotics," study authors wrote.