Faecal samples from 1365 healthy asymptomatic volunteers from 4 regions in England were screened for the presence of Clostridium difficile between Dec 2013 and July 2014. Carriage rate of C. difficile in healthy patients was 0.5%, which is lower than reported previously but this is probably due to sample groups in previous syudies being comprised solely of elderly volunteers or symptomatic patients.. This study demonstrates that the true community reservoir of C. difficile in the healthy UK population is very low, unless the individual has been on a course of antibiotics or had a recent admission to hospital, predisposing them to increased likelihood of C. difficile colonizing the gut.
Manzoor, S.E. et al. Journal of Hospital Infection , Volume 97 , Issue 2 , 153 – 155
