DEVELOPING PROPHYLACTIC ANTIBIOTIC REGIMENS FOR ABDOMINAL-SURGERY

During the past century, great strides have been made to reduce the risk of postoperative sepsis. For the early surgical pioneers, meticulous technique and surgical asepsis were the primary means of preventing wound infection. Since that time, animal studies and large-scale prospective human trials have identified other physiologic determinants of wound infection that led to the development of fundamental guidelines for wound care. With the discovery of antimicrobials, the risk of infection following various types of surgical procedures has been greatly reduced. Increased understanding of the pathophysiology of various disease states of the gastrointestinal tract should lead to a more prudent use of antibiotics as prophylactic agents in general surgery.