Surgical site infections following emergency abdominal surgery: a prospective cohort study

Background: Surgical site infection (SSI) is of major concern in surgical patients due to increased morbidity and mortality, prolonged hospital stay, increased need for intensive care, increased costs and hospital readmissions. The main objective of this study was to define the incidence and risk factors associated with SSI in patients undergoing emergency abdominal surgery. Methods: This is a prospective cohort study. Patients over the age of 18 who underwent emergency abdominal surgery were included in this study. [ma1]Patients under 18 years of age, who underwent elective surgery and who underwent procedures outside the abdomen were excluded from the study. Wound assessments were performed according to ASEPSIS score. Results: A total of 130 patients were included in the study. The incidence of SSI was found to be 10.0%. The prevalence of SSI was 27.5% (8/29) in patients operated for intestinal obstruction and 4.9% (5/101) in other patients (p=0.001). [ma2]Predictors[ma3] of SSI were open surgical approach, contaminated/dirty wound group, intestinal obstruction, colorectal surgery, increasing incision length[ma4] and age. Conclusion: This study identified several independent risk factors for SSI after emergency abdominal surgery that need to be addressed. [ma5]