A three-part intervention helped reduce the incidence of surgical site infections among pediatric patients who underwent cardiovascular surgery, according to study published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.
Researchers relied on existing guidelines to create an intervention that focused on preoperative preparation, prophylactic antibiotics and postoperative incision care, with special attention paid to incision care of patients with delayed closure.
The study authors discovered several benefits from the intervention, including an increase in timely preoperative prophylactic antibiotic dosing and decrease in surgical site infections. Specifically, surgical site infections decreased from 40 percent to 0.8 percent in patients with delayed closure and from 4.3 percent to 1.8 percent in patients with immediate closure.
Researchers relied on existing guidelines to create an intervention that focused on preoperative preparation, prophylactic antibiotics and postoperative incision care, with special attention paid to incision care of patients with delayed closure.
The study authors discovered several benefits from the intervention, including an increase in timely preoperative prophylactic antibiotic dosing and decrease in surgical site infections. Specifically, surgical site infections decreased from 40 percent to 0.8 percent in patients with delayed closure and from 4.3 percent to 1.8 percent in patients with immediate closure.
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