Epidemics of Diarrhea Caused by a Clindamycin-Resistant Strain ofClostridium difficilein Four Hospitals

Abstract
Large outbreaks of diarrhea caused by a newly recognized strain of Clostridium difficile occurred in four hospitals located in different parts of the United States between 1989 and 1992. Since frequent use of clindamycin was associated with the outbreak in one of the hospitals, we examined the resistance genes of the epidemic-strain isolates and studied the role of clindamycin use in these outbreaks.