Clostridium difficile infection in febrile neutropenic malignancy children.

ABSTRACT

C.difficile infections were studies in 30 febrile neutropenic malignancy children with diagnoses of ALL (15), AML (9), non-Hodgkin lymphoma (3) and others (3). All children have been on chemotherapy during induction phase (15), maintenance phase (9), consolidation phase (3) and pulse therapy phase (3). They were treated with ceftazidime and amikacin intravenously for at least 7 days. Stool specimens were collected before and 2 and 4 weeks after starting antibiotics. C.difficile toxin A in stools were detected by ELISA method which showed positive results in 11 cases (36.7%). There were 5, 5, and 2 positive specimens at before and 2, and 4 weeks respectively. All 5 cases of the first group had history of the last receiving antibiotic longer than 3 months. All of positive C.difficile toxin cases had no diarrhea or abdominal pain. Chemotherapy and cephalosporin were the important factors for colonization of C.difficile in malignancy children.