C. diff Cleanup and Disposal

Clostridioides difficile is a bacterium that causes Clostridium difficile colitis in the colon. The illness often occurs after a patient uses antibiotic medications. After entering the individual’s body through their mouth, the bacteria move to the colon and start releasing toxins that destroy cells and tissues and cause inflammation.

It has various symptoms, such as diarrhea and life-threatening damage to the large intestines. Research indicated that the infection is more common among older adults. In the United States, this infection infects about 200,000 people in hospitals and other healthcare settings annually.

Cleaning up after C diff is dangerous because it is highly contagious. This colon infection can easily affect other people outside a hospital through the bacterium’s strains. For this reason, only experienced professionals with the right equipment and chemicals should clean an area that this infectious disease has impacted.

Cleaning is also dangerous because of the persistence of C. difficile spores on bathroom surfaces, rectal thermometers, hospital rooms, and other areas or devices that the infected patients touch. The bacterium’s dormant state when outside the colon supports its survival in different environments. Consequently, healthcare workers who handle infected individuals or clean these devices or spaces can pick the spores and spread them to other uninfected patients.

Another reason why it is dangerous to cleanup C diff is because C. difficile spores can survive on inanimate surfaces for approximately five months. They are usually resistant to most decontamination techniques, including hospital disinfectants. The bacteria start to produce the infection again when they enter a person’s digestive system.

Conclusion

Overall, Clostridioides difficile grows and produces toxins that affect the walls of the large intestines. Older adults who take antibiotics are more vulnerable to this infection. Cleaning after Clostridioides difficile is challenging because it is communicable, persistent to disinfectants, and can survive for many months.