Clostridium difficile (C.diff) was a contributory factor in the deaths of three patients at a Highland hospital, it has been revealed.

The patients died at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness in September, October and earlier this month according to NHS Highland.

The health authority could not reveal any details about the deceased due to partient confidentiality but said the cases were not related.

A spokesperson said: “NHS Highland takes Infection Control very seriously. A robust surveillance programme is in place to ensure any potential cases are identified quickly and treated according to the patient needs.”

C.diff is present in only 3% of adults and rarely causes problems in healthy people. However it can cause diarrhoea and other gastrointestinal symptoms if the normal balance of the gut is upset.