Antibiotics May Be Linked To Serious Diarrhea Infection In Children

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have presented findings that link the use of antibiotics with severe instances of diarrhea in children. The study shows that the majority of cases in children are due to infection by Clostridium difficile (C. difficile).  The infections have not been contracted from hospitals and the CDC is directing advice to doctors urging improved prescribing practices to protect child health. The CDC's director, Tom Frieden, has stated that incorrect prescribing is placing children at risk of various antibiotic resistant conditions and C. difficile. The study has shown that upsetting the fine balance of bacteria, both good and bad, in the gut is vital to the ability to fight infection. Antibiotics can upset this balance placing an individual at risk. If allowed C. difficile can cause inflammation of the gut lining leading to colitis.  The bacteria are responsible for the majority of cases of severe diarrhea in the US currently. Figures are as high 250,000 (in hospitalized patients) with 14,000 fatalities annually, to include adults and children.

Antibiotics are said to destroy good bacteria which are able to battle infection and these return only after weeks or months rendering patients susceptible to C. difficile infection.  In the study 73 percent of children infected with the bacteria acquired it in the community.  These children had been on antibiotics shortly before becoming infected, most of which were prescribed for sinus, upper respiratory, and ear infections.  Research shows that in the instance of respiratory cases 50 percent of the children did not require antibiotics. Doctors are therefore being urged to more carefully prescribe to curb the risk of C. difficile infection for children. Improvements have been noted in prescribing antibiotics for acute respiratory infections in children but the CDC continues to urge doctors to follow guidelines set out in the CDC's Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work program. Dr. Laura Hick's the programs director stresses the importance of parent/doctor collaboration to ensure the best treatment for a child, which may involve symptom relief rather than antibiotics.  In July 2013 Medical News Today reported on a study carried out in the UK linking antibiotic use in babies with the prevalence of eczema.  Research indicates a 40 percent increase in developing eczema for babies treated with antibiotics in the early years of life.