Clostridium Difficile

In the world that we live in, microorganisms are all around us. Some of these microorganisms are good and help us stay healthy, and on the other hand, some of them cause diseases and can make us very ill. What is a microorganism you might ask? A microorganism is a microscopic organism that you can only see under a microscope such as a bacterium, virus, or fungi. The focus of this paper will be on the bacteria that causes Clostridium difficile (C. difficile).
Bacteria are named according to their shape and classified according to their staining properties (which will be discussed later). Furthermore, bacteria is a single-celled organism. Bacteria may need a host or live and reproduce outside a host. Most bacteria produce cell walls that …show more content…
difficile is a Gram- positive, rod shaped, anaerobic bacterium (singular for bacteria), which is sometimes found normally in the intestinal tract and can cause infection. When the normal flora of the intestinal tract has been destroyed, usually from long term steroid use, C. difficile can overgrow and release toxins that cause severe diarrhea, fever, bloating, and abdominal pain. Healthy people typically do not have to worry about C. difficile overgrowth. C. difficile bacteria are transmitted by fecal-oral route from touching feces-contaminated surfaces. Which means if you touch a fecal-contaminated surface and touch your mouth or food and if you sit on a fecal-contaminated surface you are likely to contract the C. difficile spores. The only way to kill C. difficile spores is to clean with bleach and excellent hand hygiene. As mentioned previously bacteria can mutate to survive. C. difficile spores can survive on surfaces for up to five months because the spores are resistant to heat and drying. Reoccurrence is likely in the people who have had Clostridium difficile. This is not good for healthcare because the chance of spreading the C. difficile spores are very high. When someone in the healthcare field encounters someone with Clostridium difficile, personal protective equipment (gown, glove, possible mask) should be worn anytime you enter the room to prevent the spread of the

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