Diagnosis of C. difficile infection is complicated, uncertain, and in need of a better solution

On any given day, one out of 25 patients in a U.S. hospital has at least one hospital-acquired infection, and Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is the most common. CDI is regarded as one of the serious, expensive, and potentially avoidable consequences of hospitalization. The length of stay can extend to 21.3 days, with estimated costs of up to $29,000 per episode of hospital-acquired CDI. The excess costs to U.S. acute-care facilities are estimated to be $4.8 billion. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are nearly half a million CDI cases in the U.S. each year and CDI is the leading cause of gastroenteritis-associated death; nearly 30,000 patients died within 30 days of diagnosis. As rates of CDI increase, so does the pressure on physicians, clinical laboratories, and hospital administrators to reduce outbreaks and contain the costs. Institutions may be fined thousands of dollars for each incidence of CDI. Clostridium difficile C....