Risk factors for surgical wound infection among the elderly

One hundred fifty-seven elderly patients with surgical wound infection were matched on wound classification and date of surgery to non-infected control patients. Factors examined for their association with wound infection included medical history, functional status, behaviour (e.g. smoking), factors predisposing to infection (e.g. results of CBC and urinalysis) and operative factors such as preparation, duration and type of operation. Conditional logistic regression analysis identified factors already known to be risk factors for wound infection at all ages (e.g. type and duration of operation), as well as factors unique to the elderly (e.g. age greater than 70 years and limited mobility).