Son free of Cdiff for over 1 year - Hooray!

[Cmmkmm]

This forum was so incredibly helpful when my son was going through his Cdiff battle which began spring 2013. Thank you to all who post! I am here to share a success story and hopefully encourage those still battling it. My son was one day shy of his 2nd birthday in April 2013 and had never needed an antibiotic. He quite suddenly had a nasty boil on the back of his neck that looked infected. After a trip to his doctor, he was put on an antibiotic. The doctor wanted to prescribe Bactrim but I was hesitant due to a family history of severe allergy to Sulfa drugs. The doctor prescribed Clindamycin instead. I had no knowledge of this medication nor its association with CDiff infection.

My son's boil started to look better but he began having trouble going to the bathroom. I was told to look out for D but it never came while taking Clindamycin. A few days after finishing his course, the D came on strong. Thinking it was a stomach virus, I didn't take any action besides hydration. I was in the process of switching pediatricians. I am so thankful God led us to the new pediatrician precisely at that time. She herself had suffered from Cdiff (and beat it) after a course of Clindamycin. When I finally took my son in after 8 days of D, she quickly diagnosed him and put him on Flagyl within hours. Had we stayed at the previous pediatrician (who prescribed Clindamycin a few weeks earlier), there is no telling how long we would have gone without treatment.

My son improved within hours on Flagyl. His stool test came back positive for CDiff but we were thankful the doctor got him on Cdiff before the results were even back. We were fortunate to get the compounded variety of Flagyl from our local Walgreens. He had no problem with the taste. I urge parents to call around and find the compounded version if Flagyl is prescribed! The taste difference is amazing. We finished the course of Flagyl (14-day). Only a couple weeks later, my son's boil was back and they were concerned about MRSA. The poor guy had never had an antibiotic before this period of time and now we were battling CDiff and possibly MRSA. The doctor reluctantly prescribed Keflex and urged us to take Florastor and probiotics concurrently (two hours apart from the antibiotic). The skin infection didn't improve on this medication and within days, my son's CDiff was back.

We were on vacation at the beach but our new wonderful pediatrician answered my call at 6am and immediately phoned in another course of Flagyl. I drove an hour to the nearest compounding pharmacy to get the better tasting Flagyl. My son was improved within a day. This relapse hit him much harder than the first time. He was very sickly and low energy and wouldn't eat. Generally pitiful before the Flagyl.

He completed the second 14 day course of Flagyl. He continued to have irritable bathroom habits. Still intermittent D with some M. He always was prone to D with a sensitive tummy as a toddler, and this worsened after CDiff. Our pediatrician referred us to both a GI specialist and an infectious disease doctor. Both were very helpful. My son STILL tested positive for CDiff 6-8 weeks after finishing his second Flagyl course. His stools continued to be suspicious and abnormal, but it still wasn't quite like the full-blown CDiff.... Our GI didn't want to do Vanco yet and encouraged us to continue with Florastor, probiotics, and dairy-free yogurt (I used So Delicious coconut yogurt). He advised decreasing the amount of probiotics because I was really giving him a LOT and it was too much. Too harsh for him. This helped. We also temporarily put him on a gluten-free, dairy-free diet.

The infectious disease doctor theorized that my son's skin infection was the result of a recurring viral rash in the same spot and that my son had scratched in bacteria, developed an infection, and then subsequently he developed an allergy to the prescription ointment. We discontinued the ointment, used moisturizer only, and the boil went away. Periodically he would still get a bump or two in this area (back of neck) but we were told to only use moisturizer and NO antibiotic ointment of any kind.

Slowly slowly my son's stomach/bowels improved. We held steady with the GI's suggestions for Florastor, probiotics and yogurt. We continue the probiotics and yogurt to this day. He is now able to eat gluten and dairy without problem, and he has the healthiest bathroom habits of his life! His bathroom habits are healthier NOW than they were BEFORE the CDiff battle. Every doctor (pediatrician, GI, ID) has advised us to avoid antibiotics as much as possible with him. So far, we haven't needed them and we will call the GI doctor if it is ever needed.

Please be encouraged that this CAN be beat! I also encourage other parents to look for symptoms in their kids. So many antibiotics are prescribed for children these days, and most parents don't know what to look for. We are told the medicine may "upset their tummies" but I had no idea about Cdiff. So many MD's are not knowledgeable about this horrible condition. Even the nurse practitioner at our wonderful pediatrician was CLUELESS! I quickly learned which doctors I could rely on... I am SO thankful for the pediatrician who diagnosed him. Because of her personal experience, she caught it early and was able to save us from a much harder battle down the road. Be encouraged! I am so thankful for the forum and wish you all wellness!
Colleen

[Cmmkmm]

I should add that he completed the second round of Flagyl in June 2013. He improved slowly slowly slowly over that summer and fall. We are so thankful for his health!

Also - We used Klaire THerbiotic Powder for probiotics, purchased at Blue Sky Vitamin's website.

[beth22]

Thanks so much for posting your story and giving hope to others, especially to children who get c diff. I wish your son continued good health and hope he never has to deal with c diff again!

[Bobbie]

Thanks so much for letting us know how you are doing. Glad we were helpful. Continued good health for your son.

This is one of the most popular forums on the site because it gives hope to others.

[grace104]

Gosh... I really needed to read this tonight. Thank you for posting your story. It's so encouraging to hear a success story and I'm thrilled to hear your son is doing so well!

My daughter is 3 1/2 and we are 17 days post Vanco (first round Flagyl failed). Praying that we can post a success story one day soon as well. Sending many good wishes your way. Thanks again for posting this.

[Bobbie]

Grace, my son had c diff in 1979 when he was four and know how frightened you are. Hang in there. Often, children recover faster than adults. My son is now 40.

[Danelle]

This is also good too hear!! My 3 1/2 daughter just finished her 1st and hope last round of Vanco after taking flagyl and crossing my finger and praying this is the end! How much probiotics did you give him each day? I'm hoping I'm not giving my daughter to much. Any advice would be great

[Bobbie]

Danielle, I didn't give my son probiotics. Back in 1979, most doc's did not recommend them but there was one called Bacid - been around for years - I gave him later. Probiotics help some - and don't do much for others. As with most things re c diff, treatments and responses differ with each individual. I did take VSL3 twice when I was on a z Pak for pneumonia and did not get C diff altho I am prone to it. There is a lot of info on the site in Treatments and CDI. Also, do a search -box ar far top right of screen - to see what probiotics people are taking.