Should I ask for Dificid along with another antibiotic, such as Keflex to help lower the chance of reoccurrence?

[Mindy]

I had FMT in 2015. Have not had antibiotics since. However, I am having serious dental issues that I know will need antibiotics. Im scared to death because last time I barely made it through. Thank you.

Also, it seems getting FMT is very difficult since Covid.

[roy]

Probably not.
C. Diff takes advantage of the damage done by antibiotic use and that damage takes several weeks/months (after an offending antibiotic) to recover.
Taking vanco or Dificid alongside another antibiotic "might" give slight protection while its being taken but as soon as its stopped your left with an even more vulnerable damaged gut flora.
Because of the differant actions of (in particular) vanco or possibly Dificid the result "might" even be additional damage.

[BetsyS]

Roy- your post makes a lot of sense, but it's counter to what my ID told me. I caught CDiff after hemicolectomy surgery and had 3 rounds of Vanco plus a taper. She instructed me to let my Primary know I needed to be treated for CDiff (recommended Dificid next time) when going on offending antibiotics.

Everyone's case is different. Vanco was a horrible drug and I suspect it did its own damage to my gut and was responsible for my hair loss. Dificid is probably the same. I have no desire to go through the treatment again if it can be helped. My CDiff was severe and caused an extra 5 days in the hospital; I've been left with chronic D. I have no desire to go through that again either.

When that day comes, I'm not going to ask for CDiff treatment outright. My plan is to consult both my ID and GI. They know the condition of my gut and related risks best.

[beth22]

Different doctors will give you different answers on that is what I found. I was told by one doctor that I would need to take vanco along with an offending antibiotic. Another doctor said not and not unless I were to relapse. I had to take Levaquin some years back and took vanco along with it. I had D the entire 10 days I was on it and began to relapse anyway. I had to do FMT enemas in order to not get worse per my doctor's instructions. So taking the vanco was a waste as far as I was concerned. A couple of years later, I was admitted to the hospital and was put in strong IV antibiotics. I was given a choice of whether to take vanco and I opted not to. I did a lot better, although about a month later I did test positive for c diff after a day or two of D, but by the time the test came back, the D was gone and I did not need the vanco. However, I did test positive for a long time, but not with D. In my case, I decided that I would not just automatically take a med for c diff, but everyone is different. Vanco did its own damage to my gut, so if I ever need to treat c difficile again, it will be Dificid for me. Ultimately, you have to decide what is best for you, but do get another opinion as you suggested.