Analysis of Risk Factors and Preventive Measures for Perioperative Incision Infection in Patients Receiving Rigid Internal Fixation of Maxillofacial Fractures

AIM: To analyze the risk factors for perioperative incision infection in patients undergoing rigid internal fixation for maxillofacial fractures and the prevention and control measures formulated to enhance the effect of surgical treatment. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 342 maxillofacial fracture patients who received rigid internal fixation treatment at the Department of Stomatological Surgery of The First People's Hospital of Yongkang (Yongkang First People's Hospital) from May 2018 to April 2023, and divided them into the uninfected group (n = 308) and the infected group (n = 34) according to their history of perioperative incision infections. Data from the subjects on age, type of fracture trauma and length of hospitalization were collected and analyzed. Multifactorial logistic regression analysis was employed to explore the risk factors for perioperative incision infections in these patients and to develop preventive measures for these risk factors. RESULTS: The study found that the incidence of incision infections was 9.94% (34/342) in 342 patients. Multifactorial logistic regression analysis showed that the incidence of incision infections was significantly higher in patients with comorbid diabetes mellitus versus those without comorbid diabetes mellitus (odds ratio [OR] = 9.543,95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.818-50.095, p = 0.008); patients undergoing surgery in summer versus those in other seasons (OR = 8.483, 95% CI: 1.476-48.744, p = 0.017); and malnourished patients versus those with good nutritional status (OR = 5.163, 95% CI: 1.016-26.231, p = 0.048). In addition, the analysis also revealed that incision size was also a risk factor for incision infections during the postoperative period (OR = 2.882, 95% CI: 1.567-5.304, p = 0.001), whereas a higher preoperative albumin level was a protective factor (OR = 0.755, 95% CI: 0.639-0.891, p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: A plethora of risk factors can lead to incision infection in patients with maxillofacial fracture during perioperative period. Therefore, preventive measures should be implemented in the hospitals to control these factors in order to reduce the occurrence of complications and enhance the effectiveness of surgical treatment.