Occurrence and trends of Clostridioides difficile infections in hospitalized patients: a prospective multi-centre cohort study in six German university hospitals, 2016–2020

Abstract

For Clostridioides difficile infections (CDIs) in Germany no longitudinal multi-centre studies with standardized protocols for diagnosing CDI are available. Recent evaluations of general surveillance databases in Germany indicate a downward trend in CDI rates. We aimed to describe the actual burden and trends of CDI in German university hospitals from 2016 to 2020.