This is more accurate than cytotoxigenic culture or cell cytotoxicity assay. Another benefit is that the result can be achieved within three hours. Drawbacks include a higher cost and the fact that the test only looks for the gene for the toxin and not the toxin itself. The latter means that if the test is used without confirmation, overdiagnosis may occur. Repeat testing may be misleading, and testing specimens more than once every seven days in people without new symptoms is highly unlikely to yield useful information. Prevention
Self containment by housing people in private rooms is important to prevent the spread of C. difficile. Contact precautions are an important part of preventing the spread of  C. difficile. C. difficile does not often occur in people who are not taking antibiotics so limiting use of antibiotics decreases the risk. Antibiotics
The most effective method for preventing CDI is proper antibiotic prescribing. In the hospital setting, where CDI is most common, most people who develop CDI are exposed to antibiotics. Although proper antibiotic prescribing is highly recommended, about 50% is considered inappropriate. This is consistent whether in the hospital, clinic, community, or academic setting. A decrease in CDI by limiting antibiotics or by limiting unnecessary prescriptions in general, both in an outbreak and nonoutbreak setting has been demonstrated to be most strongly associated with reduced CDI. Further, reactions to medication may be severe: CDI infections were the most common contributor to adverse drug events seen in U.S. hospitals in 2011.
If oral vancomycin was used for the initial episode, then a prolonged oral vancomycin pulse dose of 125 mg four times daily for 10-14 days followed by a taper (twice daily for one week, then every two to three days for 2-8 weeks) or fidaxomicin 200 mg twice daily for 10 days. For a second recurrent episode, the IDSA recommends options including the aforementioned oral vancomycin pulse dose followed by the prolonged taper; oral vancomycin 125 mg four times daily for 10 days followed by rifaximin 400 mg three times daily for 20 days; fidaxomicin 200 mg twice daily for 10 days, or a fecal microbiota transplant.For patients with C. diff infections that fail to be resolved with traditional antibiotic regimens, fecal microbiome transplants boasts an average cure rate of >90%. In a review of 317 patients, it was shown to lead to resolution in 92% of the persistent and recurrent disease cases. It is clear that restoration of gut flora is paramount in the struggle against recurrent CDI. With effective antibiotic therapy, C. difficile can be reduced and natural colonization resistance can develop over time as the natural microbial community recovers. Reinfection or recurrence may occur before this process is complete. Fecal microbiota transplant may expedite this recovery by directly replacing the missing microbial community members. However, human-derived fecal matter is difficult to standardize and has multiple potential risks, including the transfer of infectious material and long-term consequences of inoculating the gut with a foreign fecal material.