THE FREQUENCY OF SURGICAL SITE INFECTIONS AMONG PATIENTS UNDERGOING ELECTIVE AND EMERGENCY SURGERY
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Keywords
emergency surgery, elective surgery, wound infections
Abstract
Background: A surgical wound is the remaining skin defect after a surgical incision. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) divides these wounds into four categories: clean (Class I), clean-contaminated (Class II), contaminated (Class III), and dirty (Class IV). According to the CDC, surgical site infections (SSI) may develop up to 30 days following an operative surgery, or up to a year if an implant is used. The CDC divides SSI into three categories based on tissue depth: superficial SSI, deep incisional SSI, and organ/space SSI. The stated SSI rate is 4.34% for elective treatments and 12.41% for emergency cases, for an overall average of 7.32%.
Objective: To investigate the frequency of surgical site infections among patients receiving elective surgery and those treated in emergency situations.
Study design: A cross-sectional study
Place and Duration: this study was conducted in Fazaia Ruth Pfau Medical College Karachi from March 2023 to March 2024
Methodology: Non-probability purposive sampling was used to calculate the sample size. This study included all general surgery patients of both genders who had surgeries either on an elective or emergency basis. All patients were monitored postoperatively in the ward and then in the outpatient department on the 5th, 7th, and 30th days. During each visit, patients were queried about fever and wound pain, and their wounds were checked for discharge.
Results: There were a total of 950 patients who were a part of this research. The patients in this study aged from 13 to 65 years. There were a total of 346 (36.5%) females, while 604 (63.5%) males. There were 693 (73.1%) patients who had elective surgery while 257 (26.9%) were operated in emergency. The infection rate was 4.7% for elective patients and 65% for emergency cases, with an average age of 18 to 40 years.
Conclusion: Patients who underwent emergency surgery had a much higher prevalence of wound infections as compared to elective surgeries.
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Sumaira Otho
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Fazaia Ruth Pfau Medical College Karachi Pakistan.
Syed Baquer Ali Rizvi
Consultant General Surgeon, Public Welfare Hospital, Sui Balochistan Pakistan.
Muhammad Asif
Postgraduate Trainee of General Surgery, Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical College, Larkana Pakistan.
Lal Shah
Chief Resident Medical officer Surgey department, People’s University of Medical and Health Sciences for Women (PUMHSW) Nawabshah Pakistan.
Shoaib Ahmed
Consultant Surgeon General Surgery, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayyad Al Nayan Hospital Quetta Pakistan.
Umar Zeb
Postgraduate Trainee of General Surgery, Dr. Ziauddin Hospital Keamari Karachi Pakistan.