For Kids With Leukemia, Antibiotics Increase Risk of C. diff

Children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia are at a higher risk for Clostridium difficile after exposure to beta-lactam antibiotics, according to the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.

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These antibiotics are commonly used in ALL pediatric patients for fever and neutropenia (low white blood cell count) management, according to the article.

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Researchers tracked more than 8,200 patients, 3.2 percent of whom developed a C. diff infection within 180 days of an ALL diagnosis.

For patients who had been exposed to beta-lactam antibiotics, each extra day of exposure correlated with an increased risk of developing C. diff, according to the report. 

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