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World J Gastroenterol. Nov 21, 2013; 19(43): 7577-7585
Published online Nov 21, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i43.7577
Published online Nov 21, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i43.7577
Clostridium difficile and inflammatory bowel disease: Role in pathogenesis and implications in treatment
Orna Nitzan, Bibiana Chazan, Raul Raz, Infectious Disease Unit, Ha’emek Medical Center, Afula 18101, Israel
Orna Nitzan, Mazen Elias, Bibiana Chazan, Raul Raz, Walid Saliba, Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 31096, Israel
Mazen Elias, Walid Saliba, Department of Internal Medicine C, Ha’emek Medical Center, Afula 18101, Israel
Author contributions: Nitzan O, Elias M, Chazan B, Raz R and Saliba W equally contributed to this paper.
Correspondence to: Walid Saliba, MD, MPH, Department of Internal Medicine C, Ha'emek Medical Center, 21 Rabin street, Afula 18101, Israel. saliba_wa@clalit.org.il
Telephone: +972-4-6495132 Fax: +972-4-6495134
Received: September 7, 2013
Revised: October 10, 2013
Accepted: October 13, 2013
Published online: November 21, 2013
Processing time: 102 Days and 8.6 Hours
Revised: October 10, 2013
Accepted: October 13, 2013
Published online: November 21, 2013
Processing time: 102 Days and 8.6 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: In this review we focus on the role of Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) in inflammatory bowel disease pathogenesis, the unique clinical aspects of C. difficile infections and prognosis in patients with inflammatory bowel disease. We also present the implications of C. difficile infections in these patients and review the most recent literature concerning diagnostic methods and treatment.