How Long Is C Diff Contagious (And Why)?

Exact Answer: Up to 48 hours

C Diff (Clostridium Difficile) is present in the body of both the healthy and ill folks. The C Diff turns out to be harmful if increased in more numbers. The good bacteria present inside your intensive would keep the track of C Diff. These bacteria (good) are responsible for controlling and maintaining the repercussion of C Diff.

The healthy people, if not having any antibiotics would not see any effects of C Diff. The C Diff would be contagious for around 48 hours. Once the diarrhoea is cured, then you have to wait for 48 hours more. After the time of waiting is over, then you could be considered a non-infectious person.

How Long Is C Diff Contagious?

The C Diff would grow in significant numbers if the good bacteria numbers get decreased. The good bacteria serve the purpose of controlling and not letting the C Diff grow in huge numbers. The antibiotics would increase the number of C Diff, as the growth of good bacteria gets reduced to a huge extent. The C diff would disturb your bowel movement.

This may happen if the balance of bacteria is affected in your intestine. Clostridium Difficile colitis happens when the bowel movement is affected due to C Diff. The symptoms of Clostridium Difficile colitis would be visible in humans. The C Diff is contagious for around 48 hours, as it may spread through the infected person to others.

Some people may observe blood in the stool. Some of the other systems are nausea and vomiting that will be seen in this health issue. The C Diff could be spread easily if you wouldn’t take precautions. The person affected with C Diff should try staying in an isolation. The infected person should not stay in an open place.

Once the C Diff is cured properly, then the patient can shift to an open place after recovery. Every human taking a high antibiotic dosage may catch the infection. The faecal-oral route is the way of C Diff to transfer to another person’s body. The person going through bowel infections (diarrhea) is at higher risk of getting the infection.

Why Is C Diff Contagious For This Long?

The infection could be cured in a few days after proper treatment. You have to undergo specific treatment for recovering the infection. After the infection stop showing any symptoms, your body would start recovering. The professional (or doctor) would ask you to rest for 2 days more (48 hours) to examine your health.

People may experience the symptoms after 24 hours, therefore the doctor keeps the patient under observation. Just because the symptoms are invisible doesn’t mean your infection is cured. The infection stays for a few days, as it takes time to control the excess growth of C Diff.
The growth of C DIff needed to be reduced for helping the patient to recover. You may have to take many medications and injections to recover from the infection phase. If the patient keeps continuing to stay unhygienic, then it would be a problem. The doctor will ask you to take some antibiotics (oral) to get normal again.
The infection would spread in a faster manner if any other person come in contact with the patient. You may catch the infection if you use the same toilet sued by the infected person. The infection would cause huge problems in patients if people keep on ignoring it for days. You should run to your doctor if you feel any signs of this infection.

Conclusion

The infections would disturb your health if you won’t get them treated. You can treat the infection to avoid the infection in your body for a long time. You can be careful while taking any type of antibiotics. The infection is contagious, so you can maintain distance from someone infected with the disease.

References

1. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM199401273300406
2. https://www.nature.com/articles/nrmicro.2016.108