Is Our Current Cleaning Method Effective at Eradicating Clostridium difficile?

C. difficile is an important cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea and can persist in healthcare environments despite routine cleaning. Using POLYWIPE™ to sample 17 environmental sites across 13 side rooms occupied by C. difficile-positive patients, contamination was assessed before and after cleaning, with culture on Brazier’s agar and confirmation by latex testing. C. difficile was detected in 21% of sites pre-cleaning and 15% post-cleaning, most frequently on under-bed flooring, toilet floors, and bed rails, with some persistence after cleaning. These findings highlight ongoing environmental contamination and the difficulty of fully eradicating spores from high-risk and hard-to-clean areas.