[Infection control measures in surgical wards and operating theaters]

A variety of infection control measures are practiced to decrease the risk of transmission of pathogens. Standard precautions are thought to be the most effective against healthcare-associated infections. However, compliance with standard precautions is not sufficiently high in Japanese hospitals. Frequent handwashing is an important measure to reduce the risks of transmitting infectious organisms from one person to another, although it is not easy to maintain high compliance in healthcare settings. This problem has not been fundamentally resolved, although infection control practitioners have addressed this problem for more than 100 years. It is recommended that healthcare workers wear personal protective equipment, such as masks, gowns, gloves, goggles, and face shields, to provide barrier protection. Environmental consideration of operation rooms must be performed in order to decrease surgical site infections. Operating theaters should be cleaned routinely, if possible using a wet vacuum. Clean air should be supplied through high-efficiency particulate air filters and positive pressure maintained. Surgeons should be aware that they are an important potential source of surgical site infection.