Brucellosis / Brucella (unpasteurized dairy) - C.Diff/Giardia

We spend a lot of time talking about the bad news in this discussion group - here's the spot for the good news. If you've had c-diff and are now well, please tell us about it here.
helo
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Brucellosis / Brucella (unpasteurized dairy) - C.Diff/Giardia

Postby helo » Mon Jun 25, 2018 6:34 pm

1st post success; lost 4 years to unknown illness with c diff factored in (3 months with ID specialist until DX).

Anyone familiar with a Brucellosis or Q Fever patient? ("rare" dairy-born and pig/goat/canine/,... infectious bacteria)

I define my success as beating&understanding C Diff and now finally getting correct diagnosis to begin proper treatment with infectious disease doc on 4th visit to UC-Denver 7th floor ID clinic =). More antibiotics for >= 6 weeks, but the success is being able to recognize C Diff as a cockroach and subdue it if needed (w/ Vanco from ID specialist... ;).

4 years of illness... dx C Diff may 2018 one month after attempted treatment for suspected chronic Giardia (never tested positive though). Hard to say if C Diff or Giardia were factors in 4 years of illness, but C Diff was awful during the month it was a primary issue. The smell will forever haunt me; had a few whiffs post-vanco but no cause for concern when it's not persistent (had plenty of occasional mystery whiffs in years prior and always wondered WTF is that house-clearing stench).

Infectious Disease specialist was reasonably certain in chronic Giardia suspicion because I had a whitewater incident ingesting silty river water july 2014, brief period of crazy acute symptoms a few weeks later followed by chronic non-specific upper&lower GI symptoms and clean colonscopy. (previous history of Giardia 2005 & 2007 was similar). Treated with Tinidizole(2000mgX3days) initially and had terrible C Diff 5 days later (didn't know for a month), then Vancomycin(14 days) + Tinidizole(2000mgX3days)+albenza(400mgX3days).

As it turns out, in 2014 shortly after whitewater incident, I contracted dairy born pathogen Brucella from unpasteurized milk that my girlfriend at the time received from someone she knew (in an unlabelled glass mason jar). Brucellosis is an incredibly rare disease in the US that even firefox spellcheck doesn't know about, slightly more common in various parts of the world.

Tested probable for Brucella antibody (1:160) with lower-lumber MRI as diagnostic cross-reference for "Ankylosing Spondylitis."
Probably won't have successful confirmation cultures until July, but exposure history and probable antibody diagnosis w/ MRI is enough to begin treatment. Fully confident in this DX because I briefly had undeniable relief from Tinidizole before hard relapses. C Diff made the entire ordeal very confusing for all parties involved, especially the doctors. Took 3.5 years just to find a new PCP who took me seriously -- she sent me to an ID clinic 3 hours away -- and they took three visits to get it right!!! =).

-helo / Colorado

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