Diarreas inducidas por antibioticos: adquisiciones recientes sobre clostridium difficile / Antibiotics induced diarrhea-recent knowledge about clostridium difficile

RESUMO

From the beginning of the antibiotherapy, diarrhea frequently ocurred as a side effect of the treatment. The spectrum of diarrheal disease associated with antibiotic therapy ranges from antibiotic associated diarrhea and colitis, to the more severe pseudomembranous colitis, wich is always associated with Clostridium difficile (CD). Because most of the antibiotics are not active against this sporulated Gram positive anaerobe. The pathogenic process accurs only by production of toxins. CD is now recognized as one of the most important hospital infections. Although therapy is available for the majority of patients with CD infection, pseudomembranous colitis is a serious disease which, if untreated, can lead to major complications.