The epidemiology of Clostridioides difficile infection in Brazil: A systematic review covering thirty years

Abstract

Clostridioides difficile is considered one of the main etiological agents of bacterial diarrhea associated with the use of antibiotics. It is an important nosocomial pathogen and the main cause of morbidity and mortality. In recent years, infections associated with C. difficile have led to numerous investigations. It is well known that C. difficile associated diarrhea (CDAD) is favored by the suppression or imbalance of the intestinal microbiome during or after antibiotic therapy. Other risk factors are, for instance, advanced age, long periods of hospitalization, chemotherapy, and other gastrointestinal infections. In the 2000's, the number of CDAD cases largely increased due to the emergence of the epidemic clone named BI/NAP1 ribotype 027, responsible for causing several outbreaks in developed countries, such as Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The presence of the epidemic clone has been reported in Asia, Latin America and Australia, however, infections associated with C. difficile (CDI) in these geographic regions are usually caused by other ribotypes. In Brazil, for instance, epidemiological data on the incidence of CDI are still limited, especially regarding the spread of C. difficile within hospital units, the spectrum of toxigenic genes and the antimicrobial resistance profile. Some studies have demonstrated the importance of notifying cases related to CDI and taking special care measures in order to minimize the spread of epidemic strains in Brazil. Finally, epidemiological analysis of the prevalent and/or exclusive ribotypes circulating in Brazil can contribute to understand and to correlate characteristics associated with the biology of this pathogen with other globally circulating ribotypes. This review aimed to summarize all published work related to the isolation of C. difficile from human patients in Brazil, being the main focus, the methodologies used for identification of prevalent ribotypes, the antimicrobial susceptibility profile, and the diseases associated with the acquisition of CDI.

Keywords: Brazil; Clostridioides difficile; Epidemiology.