Detection and characterization of Clostridium difficile in retail chicken

This study was designed to evaluate the prevalence of Clostridium difficile contamination of retail chicken. Chicken legs, thighs and wings were purchased using a standardised method from retail outlets across Ontario, Canada. Selective culture was used for qualitative and quantitative detection of C. difficile. Clostridium difficile was isolated from 26 ? 203 chicken samples. All isolates were ribotype 078, a strain that has been associated with food animals and potentially community-associated disease in humans. All positive samples were positive only on enrichment culture. Clostridium difficile could be found relatively commonly in retail chicken meat, albeit at low levels. This is the first study to report C. difficile in chicken meat. Contamination of meat with C. difficile strains implicated in human infections raises concerns about food as a source of C. difficile infection. The relevance of food contamination is completely unclear at this point but food should be investigated as a source of infection. Lett Appl Microbiol. 2010;50:362-5.