Recurrence of Clostridium Difficile and Cytomegalovirus Infections in Patients with Ulcerative Colitis Who Undergo Ileal Pouch-Anal Anastomosis

Background Patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) are at increased risk for infections such as Clostridium difficile and cytomegalovirus (CMV) colitis due to chronic immunosuppression. These patients often undergo multiple surgeries putting them at risk for recurrence of the infection. However, rates of recurrence in this setting and outcomes are not well understood. Aim The aim of this study is to determine rates of recurrence of C difficile and CMV infection in patients undergoing multistage UC surgeries and effects of antibiotic prophylaxis on outcomes. Methods All patients with UC who underwent IPAA between 2001 and 2017 (at two tertiary referral centers were identified. History of C. difficile or CMV colitis prior to any surgery and recurrence after IPAA was noted Results A total of 633 patients with UC who underwent IPAA were identified, of whom 8.1% patients had C. difficile and 2.7% had CMV infections. 9.8% of C. difficile and 5.9% of CMV patients recurred after IPAA. Rates of abdominal sepsis (14.7% vs. 12.7%), 90-day mortality (0% vs. 0.4%), pouchitis (36.8% vs. 45.0%), or return to stoma (7.4% vs. 5.4%) were similar between patients who did or did not have infections. In patients with C. difficile infection prior to first surgery, none of the patients who received prophylaxis had recurrent infection. Conclusions Rates of C. difficile and CMV infections remain high in patients undergoing surgery for UC, with substantial minority developing recurrent infection during subsequent surgical procedures. Antibiotic prophylaxis in patients with a history of C difficile may reduce the rate of recurrent infection.