PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Obesity may increase the risk of Clostridium difficile infection

2013-10-24
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Gina DiGravio
gina.digravio@bmc.org
617-638-8480
Boston University Medical Center
Obesity may increase the risk of Clostridium difficile infection (Boston)--Researchers from Boston Medical Center (BMC) and Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have identified obesity as a possible risk factor for clostridium difficile infection (CDI). These findings, which appear online in Emerging Infectious Diseases, may contribute to improved clinical surveillance of those at highest risk of disease.

CDI is a bacterial infection of the gut which has traditionally been described as a healthcare associated infection. CDIs have a profound economic impact on the healthcare system with estimated costs ranging from $496 million to more than $1 billion and are leading cause of infectious diarrhea in hospitalized patients.

During the past decade, the annual number of hospital discharge diagnoses of CDI have doubled from approximately 139,000 to 336,600 and physicians are starting to see these infections in traditionally low risk patients without any healthcare or antibiotic exposure. According to the researchers this has raised the concern for whether there are yet unidentified risk factors increasing the probability of CDI in a subset of individuals.

The researchers examined three groups of patients with CDI--those who were admitted from the community with no risk factors, those who had prior exposure to hospitals or clinics, and those who had onset of disease in the hospital. "We hypothesized that in a group without healthcare exposure, the significance of other risk factors would be increased. In particular, we were interested in inflammatory bowel disease which has previously been associated with higher risk of acquiring this infection and obesity, which has never been examined," explained corresponding author Nahid Bhadelia, MD, MALD, associate hospital epidemiologist at BMC and assistant professor of medicine at BUSM.

The researchers found that cases with community onset infection were four times more likely to be obese compared to those who had prior known exposure to a healthcare facility. These patients were also five times more likely to have inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). "We were also surprised to note that our patients who were presenting from the community were almost twice as likely to be obese as the general population in Massachusetts (34 percent compared to 23 percent). Hence, like IBD, obesity may be associated with higher risk of CDI," added Bhadelia.

###


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Copious community-associated MRSA in nursing homes

2013-10-24
Copious community-associated MRSA in nursing homes More than one quarter of residents of 26 nursing homes in Orange County, California carry community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), which spread more easily, and may cause more ...

NASA analyzes Hurricane Raymond's copious rainfall

2013-10-24
NASA analyzes Hurricane Raymond's copious rainfall Powerful hurricane Raymond, located off Mexico's south-central Pacific coast, weakened to a tropical storm and has dropped a lot of rain over central western Mexico's coast. NASA's TRMM satellite measured rainfall ...

Finding psychiatric drugs in the movements of mice

2013-10-24
Finding psychiatric drugs in the movements of mice Research from Tel Aviv University unlocks the secrets of mouse behavior to help identify promising new drugs Developing psychiatric medications is a long and complex process. Candidate drugs are evaluated ...

Dry air and cooler waters weakening Tropical Depression Lorenzo

2013-10-24
Dry air and cooler waters weakening Tropical Depression Lorenzo NOAA's GOES-East satellite captured a visible image of Tropical Depression Lorenzo that showed very little convection happening throughout the system because of two environmental factors: dry air and ...

'Anklebot' helps determine ankle stiffness

2013-10-24
'Anklebot' helps determine ankle stiffness CAMBRIDGE, MA -- For most healthy bipeds, the act of walking is seldom given a second thought: One foot follows the other, and the rest of the body falls in line, supported by a system of muscle, tendon, and ...

Researcher is optimistic about meeting 'Grand Challenge' of global prosperity

2013-10-24
Researcher is optimistic about meeting 'Grand Challenge' of global prosperity ITHACA, N.Y. – With ecological viability threatened, world resources draining, population burgeoning and despair running rampant, the end is nigh. Or not, says Lawrence M. Cathles, Cornell ...

Just 2 weeks in orbit causes changes in eyes

2013-10-24
Just 2 weeks in orbit causes changes in eyes HOUSTON -- ( Oct. 24, 2013 ) -- Just 13 days in space may be enough to cause profound changes in eye structure and gene expression, report researchers from Houston Methodist, NASA Johnson Space Center, and two other ...

King of beasts losing ground in Uganda's paradise

2013-10-24
King of beasts losing ground in Uganda's paradise Conservationists from the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of St. Andrews warn that Uganda's African lions—a mainstay of the country's tourism industry and a symbol of Africa—are on the verge of ...

Identifying a mystery channel crucial for hearing

2013-10-24
Identifying a mystery channel crucial for hearing Our ability to hear relies on hair cells, sensory receptors that mechanically amplify low-level sound that enters the inner ear through a transduction channel. Although the transduction channel was characterized ...

Washing your hands makes you optimistic

2013-10-24
Washing your hands makes you optimistic Cologne Academic has examined the psychology of physical cleansing The Junior Professor for Social and Media Psychology Dr. Kai Kaspar from the University of Cologne has examined how physical cleansing affects us ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Youngest in class at higher risk of mental health problems

American Heart Association announces new volunteer leaders for 2025-26

Gut microbiota analysis can help catch gestational diabetes

FAU’s Paulina DeVito awarded prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowship

Champions for change – Paid time off initiative just made clinical trials participation easier

Fentanyl detection through packaging

Prof. Eran Meshorer elected to EMBO for pioneering work in epigenetics

New 3D glacier visualizations provide insights into a hotter Earth

Creativity across disciplines

Consequences of low Antarctic sea ice

Hear here: How loudness and acoustic cues help us judge where a speaker is facing

A unique method of rare-earth recycling can strengthen the raw material independence of Europe and America

Epilepsy self-management program shows promise to control seizures, improve mood and quality of life

Fat may play an important role in brain metabolism

New study finds no lasting impact of pandemic pet ownership on human well-being

New insights on genetic damage of some chemotherapies could guide future treatments with less harmful side effects

Gut microbes could protect us from toxic ‘forever chemicals’

Novel modelling links sea ice loss to Antarctic ice shelf calving events

Scientists can tell how fast you're aging from a single brain scan

U.S. uterine cancer incidence and mortality rates expected to significantly increase by 2050

Public take the lead in discovery of new exploding star

What are they vaping? Study reveals alarming surge in adolescent vaping of THC, CBD, and synthetic cannabinoids

ECMWF - delivering forecasts over 10 times faster and cutting energy usage by 1000

Brazilian neuroscientist reveals how viral infections transform the brain through microscopic detective work

Turning social fragmentation into action through discovering relatedness

Cheese may really be giving you nightmares, scientists find

Study reveals most common medical emergencies in schools

Breathable yet protective: Next-gen medical textiles with micro/nano networks

Frequency-engineered MXene supercapacitors enable efficient pulse charging in TENG–SC hybrid systems

Developed an AI-based classification system for facial pigmented lesions

[Press-News.org] Obesity may increase the risk of Clostridium difficile infection