Help! The doctors seems inexperienced with C.Diff

[Trpro]

Hi. I’m a 57 yo female who thought she was healthy other than mild IBS-C. I posted earlier about my “mild” c.diff that was just diarrhea: no fever, nausea,or loss of appetite. I have no idea how I contracted it because it was 6 months since I had antibiotics for an infected tooth,and there’s been no hospital stays, proton pumps, etc. I do visit my mom who is in a chronic care facility for advanced dementia but only monthly because she lives In Toronto and I’m in Montreal, Que.
My question is about my family doctor who seems very ignorant of c.difficile. She put me on Vancomycin after testing positive for c.diff on Jan.26th. I had to see my daughter in Morocco the following Wednesday for 11 days. I was VERY careful of what I ingested:only bottled water,no fresh fruits or veggies because of potential contamination, only chicken that seemed very well cooked (I used to be a strick vegetarian for 10years but re-introduced (mostly organic) chicken a year and a half ago). I basically ate bread and cookies because i was so paranoid of picking up something and complicating things. On my way back home on the plane, two days after my last pill, I had a mostly normal BM. Because I was so happy to be home around “safe Canadian” food, for dinner I had a raw fruit and veggie smoothie with pumpkin seeds, kefir, and whey powder. Later for a snack I had Greek yogurt and clementines. By 5:30 in the morning, I was running to the loo and since then, my bowels are back to before Vancomycin but maybe less frequent. I thought it was an adjustment period but 10days later I went to the doctors.
Here’s my question and now my worry: she seems very inexperienced with c.diff. She told me that she has never had anyone who didn’t get better after a 2week dose of Vancomycin. She was going to retest for c diff only 10 days after my last pill. It was me who told her that you need to wait at least 2weeks, and even then that’s debatable as to how reliable the results will be, etc. She looked this up on the computer because she really didn’t know this then told me she will “confer with her colleagues and get back with me”. Her nurse called later and said she’s putting me back on Vancomycin,and retesting me, plus testing for other things that I may have picked up in Morocco. The next morning the nurse called again and said forget what was said before; she wants me to go to the clinic at the hospital for infectious diseases. I went there the next morning, and the specialist gave me about 3mins of his time, and basically wants to retest me for c diff. Also, norovirus, and rotavirus (????). Nothing for parasites. He send me for some blood tests, but they’re really just for signs of dehydration, one is for signs of inflammation, and that it.
Also, my sisters friend who is a family physician here in Montreal also thinks it weird I got c. diff and that it didn’t clear up with the drugs. This is making me really nervous and I’m not sure of my next step. I am now watching my diet because of all the reading I’ve done on this website. I cut out dairy and gluten, which seems to help a bit, but last night for dinner I ate 5 clementines and a banana because I read that they are low FODMAP, but after major diarrhea this morning, I found out very ripe bananas are a big no-no! Also, Florastor seem to make me worse.
Has anyone else had similar experiences??

[Megs717]

Hi there! I am certainly no C Diff expert, and most people in this group are far more well versed than I, but I don't think it's incredibly unusual to need another round of Vanco (given they rule everything else out) and the doctors have been careful to say to me most are better after 1-2 courses. I took a ten day course of Flagyl, and relapsed within 72 hours. They didn't bother testing my stool, but given my white blood cell count exceeded 17,000 they didn't need to. I'm now on my second day of Vanco and finally feeling human.
That said, talk to your doctor and consider doing a taper. I also struggled with finding doctors that knew much about this - I think unless you see an Infectious Disease or GI, it's like speaking a different language.
TLDR - It's not unusual that one round of antibiotics didn't clear you. I'd definitely consider a taper.

[beth22]

I am one that could not tolerate fruit, including bananas. Florastor gave me tons of gas and even a rash. I would try to eat a bland diet and introduce fruits and vegetables SLOWLY. I would also not treat for c difficile without a positive test.

[Trpro]

Thank you so much your answers! I really need to feel heard by those experienced so I don’t feel so lost!

[Lisa33]

If you are having profuse watery D several times a day with the urgency to go, then the c-diff is most likely back. If you are just having 1-2 loose to D stools, I would hesitate to treat. It takes quite some time for your GI system to go back to normal after c-diff and after taking vanco. I would also eat bland for a while to see if that helps things. It does sound like your doctor isn't very familiar with c-diff, so seeing a GI who is would be best. It isn't unusual to relapse after one round of meds. I would also ask your doctor about a vanco taper if you are indeed having a relapse. Hopefully this isn't a relapse and your gut just needs some time to heal. Feel better.

Lisa