Author information

1 Division of Gastroenterology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI.

2 Division of Infectious Diseases, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI.

Abstract

Clostridium difficile detection in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients is a common occurrence in part due to the standard clinical practice of testing for C. difficile presence during acute IBD exacerbations. Given the clinical overlap between C. difficile infection and acute IBD exacerbations (i.e. increased frequency of loose stools, abdominal pain), it is hard to differentiate C. difficile infection versus colonization in patients with underlying IBD who test positive for C. difficile. Here we review the epidemiology, clinical presentation, risk factors, diagnosis, treatment and outcomes of IBD patients with positive C. difficile tests.