HYPOTHESIS
Bowel preparation traditionally consists of cathartics, oral antibiotics, and intravenous antibiotics. We hypothesize that the use of oral antibiotics in bowel preparation results in a higher rate of postoperative Clostridium difficile colitis.
DESIGN
Retrospective case-controlled study of elective colon surgery patients; January 1997 to June 2003.
SETTING
Tertiary care veterans ...
