New to C Diff

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Napper
Regular User
Posts: 54
Joined: Wed Nov 15, 2017 6:41 pm

New to C Diff

Postby Napper » Wed Nov 15, 2017 7:14 pm

Hi there,

I'm new. I'm a 52 year old female. I was diagnosed with C Diff one week ago. I was hospitalized Nov. 8-12. I'm on probiotics and Vanco. I'm doing everything the Dr. told me, eating right, etc. I was fine Monday and Tuesday, just very weak from my hospital stay and weight loss. However, today the diarrhea started again. Is this normal? I've never heard of C Diff until now and everything I've read scares me. When I read about the FMT I made my husband promise to shoot me if it comes to that! I mean, to me it's just gross! I'm having a hard time accepting that I have this and am embarrassed. I wouldn't even let the nurses do my sample. I collected it myself. I've had a lot of physical problems since I was 18 and went septic with staph and lost a kidney in the process. Since then, my immune system has been out of whack. This C Diff was caused by 2 rounds of antibiotics I had to take for an infection after foot surgery.

New and so scared.

Diane

NanciT
Long Time Contributor
Posts: 3035
Joined: Thu Sep 18, 2014 12:01 pm

Re: New to C Diff

Postby NanciT » Thu Nov 16, 2017 12:07 am

Hello Diane and Welcome to the site Please read the first thread for all new posters

Sorry you had to find us but please don't be embarrassed about having CDIFF. Sadly it is becoming more common and it's very difficult to seal with. I also want to add this illness is rough and the FMT is has saved many. Just read the FMT forum and you will see it has helped so many.
If you started having diarrhea again give your GI a call if it continues. You don't mention the dose of Vanco or how long you have actually been on it.
Hopefully the diarrhea will stop and you can recover from this with one round of treatment. Diet can play a role in recovery so you want to go easy on the gut. Great they already started you on probiotics.

Hope you feel better soon
NanciT

georgina
Long Time Contributor
Posts: 2635
Joined: Sat Sep 12, 2015 10:07 am

Re: New to C Diff

Postby georgina » Thu Nov 16, 2017 12:47 am

Hi Napper
Welcome to the site that nobody want's to join!
What dosage of Vanco are you on? No it's definitely not normal to have frequent D while on treatment , unless you ate something that didn't agree with you.There were cases such as yours that had not responded to the the classic dosage of vanco , and they needed to go back to their doctor and ask for their dosage to be revised. Sometimes dosages of 250 mg x 4 times/ day are needed to control symptoms.
Also , you are on your first Cdiff episode so you should not think about FMT right now ,as you probably read from the intro letter (first forum) most Cdiff cases get cured from first line of meds.FMT is reserved for the relapsing cases , hopefully not your case.

brae
New User
Posts: 25
Joined: Tue Mar 24, 2015 5:40 am

Re: New to C Diff

Postby brae » Thu Nov 16, 2017 3:03 am

Hi Napper. I was broadsided by C. Diff as well a year and a half ago from antibiotics after routine surgery. Getting rid of it took two 2 week rounds of flagyl, with acidopholous probiotic during the second round. Since then I haven't done a very good job of restoring my digestive health, thinking initially I was in the clear, and have had some stumbling blocks. I hope you get rid of it soon. :)

Lisa33
Long Time Contributor
Posts: 2430
Joined: Mon Sep 29, 2014 1:45 pm

Re: New to C Diff

Postby Lisa33 » Thu Nov 16, 2017 10:15 am

I agree with Georgina. If you are having profuse D again, speak to your doctor. Your dosing may need to be adjusted. I would also discuss doing a vanco taper. It gives you even more of a fighting chance to nip the c-diff in the bud once and for all. Most people are cured after one or two rounds of meds. Given that you were put on Vanco off the bat is even better. Most are put on Flagyl as the first round, which is the least effective and harsh on your body. Dificid also has a high cure rate and also doesn't target as much good bacteria as the other meds. That would probably be a next step plan after a vanco/vanco tapers. FMT is the last resort after meds have failed. Remember, the majority do not get to that point. I am not sure which probiotics that you are taking, but just a note. Live bacteria probiotics should be spaced apart from meds as the meds will kill it off. Yeast probiotics, such as florastor (sacchromyces boulardii) are not killed off by the meds. I do feel that the probiotics aided in getting rid of c-diff. I was cured by vanco, after Flagyl failed.

And, don't be embarrassed. Doctors are used to dealing with "poop" issues.

I hope you feel better soon.
Lisa

Napper
Regular User
Posts: 54
Joined: Wed Nov 15, 2017 6:41 pm

Re: New to C Diff

Postby Napper » Thu Nov 16, 2017 11:44 am

Thank you for the welcome and answers. Im on 125 mg of Vanco every six hours for 10 dayls. Im on Risaquad probiotics. I hope I'm taking it right. I'll keep my eye on it. I see my GI Dr Wed. So hopefully he'll be able to fluctuate the antibiotic if need be. I'll call sooner if need be.
Thanks again!


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