Clinical and demographic profile of patients reporting for Clostridium difficile infection in a tertiary care hospital

of toxins by ELISA, though considered to be suboptimal in terms of sensitivity (60-90%) and specificity (approx. 95%). The positive and negative predictive values of ELISA kits vary depending on the prevalence of patient condition. If the prevalence of CDT in the faecal samples is <10%, the positive predictive value dips to <50% and thus laboratory diagnosis by itself cannot be expected as a reliable diagnosis for clinical management.[3] A false negative result can lead to inappropriate medical management, worsening of CDI, risk of outbreaks and under-reporting; whereas, a false positive result causes lack of appropriate treatment, missing diagnosis of the actual cause of diarrhoea, over-reporting and anxiety to the patient and the family.