An outbreak of Clostridium difficile associated diarrhoea in urological practice: a potential consequence of excessive antibiotic prophylaxis?

During an outbreak of Clostridium difficile associated diarrhoea, 17 patients on a urological ward developed symptoms in a 17-day period. Of these patients, 15 had received antibiotics during their admission. In order to eradicate the infection, it was necessary to close the unit for 1 month. Antibiotic associated diarrhoea is a serious complication of the prophylactic and therapeutic use of such agents and, because of the common use of antimicrobials on urological units, there is potential for similar epidemics.