An approach for C. difficile testing that includes only nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT) may contribute to overdiagnosis of C. difficile infection (CDI) and overtreatment with C. difficile-specific antibiotics. Treating C. difficile carriers may also put patients at higher risk of acquiring true C. difficile infections. As a result, it is critical to differentiate patients with true C. difficile infections from those who are C. difficile carriers. C. difficile toxin EIA results correlate more closely to active disease and clinical outcomes than other testing methods, and the C. DIFF QUIK CHEK COMPLETE® test simultaneously provides both the GDH and toxin results of a two-step algorithm in a single test. It improves workflow, speeds turnaround time, and offers significant cost savings over a NAAT-first algorithm.
A published report (Dbeibo et al, 2023) details the experience of one institution that recently made a change from NAAT-only C. difficile testing to a two-step (GDH + toxin EIA) algorithm approach. The change in testing algorithm correlated with a significant decrease in C. difficile-specific antibiotic treatment. Withholding treatment from putative carriers did not result in an increase in adverse patient outcomes.
Quick and reliable C. difficile testing results, for both screening and toxin testing, are required to make rapid clinical decisions for the proper treatment of suspected C. difficile infections. The C. DIFF QUIK CHEK COMPLETE® test provides GDH and toxin results in ~30 minutes, differentiating active infection from colonization in one cost-effective, clinically relevant test.