Publication:

Surgical site infections post cesarean section

Background Surgical site infections are among the most common hospital acquired infections. They make upto 14-16% of inpatient infections. Objective of present study was to evaluate the risk factors associated with surgical site infections and the bacteria causing wound infections in obstetric operations and the antibiotic sensitivity and resistance pattern of the pathogens isolated.

Methods 100 women with wound infection during hospital stay or within 30 days following surgery. Pus samples were collected from the wound site with help of sterile swabs under aseptic precautions and immediately transported to microbiology laboratory for culture and sensitivity.

Results Most of the patients belonged to the age group of 21-25 years, contributing to 55% of the cases. Majority of the women are from rural areas (71%). 57% of the cases were unbooked. 90% of the SSI were seen in emergency surgeries. Anaemia (48%) was the most common medical risk factor followed by hypertensive disorders 25%. The risk of post operative infection has been shown to be proportional to volume of blood loss during cesarean section and duration of surgery. Staphylococcus aureus to be predominant organism of wound infection of which 21% were MRSA followed by Klebsiella and E.coli. The gram negative isolates were 100% resistant to ampicillin followed by 22.5% to third generation cephalosporins and aminoglycosides.

Conclusions Proper assessment of risk factors that predispose to SSI is critical for the development of strategies for reducing the incidence of SSI and for identifying high risk patients requiring intensive postoperative surveillance.