Darrell S. Pardi, M.D.

The research program of Darrell S. Pardi, M.D., focuses on the clinical features, epidemiology and treatment of inflammatory bowel disease, specifically microscopic colitis, also known as lymphocytic colitis or collagenous colitis; pouchitis; and, in particular, Clostridium difficile (C. difficile).

Dr. Pardi also is one of the few investigators in the world with an interest in sclerosing mesenteritis, also known as mesenteric panniculitis.

Focus areas

• C. difficile infection. Clinical trials of new treatments and prevention strategies; studies of the gut microbiome to understand and predict individual risk and outcomes; epidemiological studies of C. difficile infection; and prediction modeling to predict an individual patient's risk of severe or complicated infection, recurrence and re-hospitalization.
• Microscopic colitis. Epidemiology, clinical features and treatment (observational studies and clinical trials).
• Pouchitis. Epidemiology, clinical features and treatment.

Significance to patient care

Dr. Pardi's research program is exploring new treatments for patients with recurrent C. difficile infection, which can be quite difficult to manage with currently available treatments. In addition, his work pointed out for the first time that a significant proportion of these infections occur in community dwellers, in contrast to the prevailing notion that this was primarily a hospital-acquired infection.

Finally, some of the work from this program aims to improve the adherence to expert guidelines by clinicians treating patients with C. difficile infection, an important issue since outcomes are related to the use of appropriate therapy.