Surgical Site Infection Prevention Bundle in Cardiac Surgery

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Surgery
• Infectious Diseases
• Public Health

Background:

• Surgical site infections (SSI) are a significant concern in healthcare, particularly in cardiac surgery, where they account for 3.5% to 21% of cases and carry a mortality rate as high as 25%.
• Existing prevention strategies for SSI in cardiac surgery focus on a bundle of measures targeting modifiable risks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify specific risk factors contributing to surgical site infections (SSI) in patients undergoing clean cardiac surgery.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective cohort study involving 1,846 patients who underwent clean cardiac surgery.
• Statistical analysis included Fisher's exact test for bivariate comparisons and Poisson regression for independent risk factor analysis (p < 0.05).

Main Results:

• Multivariate analysis identified several significant risk factors for SSI.
• These include a higher surgical risk index (OR: 2.575), obesity (OR: 2.068), diabetes mellitus (OR: 1.678), and elevated blood glucose levels (OR: 1.004).

Conclusions:

• Complete adherence to the standard preventive bundle did not demonstrate a significant reduction in SSI risk.
• Diabetes mellitus, obesity, and surgical risk index are identified as key factors increasing the risk of SSI in cardiac surgery patients.