Publication:

Impact of using triclosan-impregnated sutures on incidence of surgical site infection: a real world Indian study

Background Surgical Site Infection is an index of health care system of any hospital. Surgical material is a risk factor for SSI that can be easily changed. One of such measures is the use of antimicrobial suture technology which involves the impregnation of synthetic, absorbable, polymeric sutures with the antiseptic, Triclosan. Triclosan-coated sutures inhibit bacterial colonization of wide-spectrum of pathogens. This study was designed to assess the efficacy of triclosan coated sutures in reducing incidence of surgical site infection in Indian population.

Methods This is a retrospective ‘real-world’ study of 150 patients who underwent surgery and wound closure with triclosan-coated suture from May 2015 to December 2015 at Grecian Hospital, Mohali. Incidence of SSI was recorded, and nature of wound was categorized. Data was subject to descriptive analysis.

Results A 99.3% of wounds sutured with triclosan coated sutures did not have surgical site infection. The single case of SSI encountered was categorized as superficial-incisional. All the evaluated cases were categorized as ‘clean’ at the time of discharge.

Conclusions Triclosan-coated sutures were responsible for the reported reduction in SSI, particularly in adult patients with clean wounds. This study justifies that in addition to the mandated core measures of surgical care, adjunctive evidence-based interventions such as Triclosan-coated sutures should be considered in the comprehensive effort to decrease risk of surgical site infection and improve outcome at both patient and institutional levels.