The Effect of Improving Basic Preventive Measures in the Perioperative Arena on Staphylococcus aureus Transmission and Surgical Site Infections

Abstract

IMPORTANCE Surgical site infections increase patient morbidity and health care costs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention emphasize improved basic preventive measures to reduce bacterial transmission and infections among patients undergoing surgery. OBJECTIVE To assess whether improved basic preventive measures can reduce perioperative Staphylococcus aureus transmission and surgical site infections.

Prevention of Prosthetic Joint Infection: From Traditional Approaches towards Quality Improvement and Data Mining

“…Meticulous intravascular catheter disinfection contributes to an overall reduction in SSIs [161]. Several studies have demonstrated the importance of regional anesthesia for the success of TJA at least in terms of complication spectrum/rate [162,163].…”

Strategies for daily operating room management of ambulatory surgery centers following resolution of the acute phase of the COVID-19 pandemic

“…During anesthesia, bacterial and viral contamination of the anesthesia workspace routinely occurs, largely due to activities of the anesthesiologist and/or nurse anesthetist caring for the patient throughout the case [1,[37][38][39][40]. Multiple steps can be followed to mitigate this risk, as follows.…”

“…(f) Double glove before touching the patient's nose/mouth and remove the outer glove following contact (e.g., placement of a nasal cannula) [54][55][56]. (g) After patient positioning, wipe down equipment and high-touch surfaces with disinfection wipes that contain a quaternary ammonium compound and alcohol [40,49,[56][57][58][59]. (h) Provide data feedback by surveillance of Enterococcus, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella, Acinetobacter, Pseudomonas, and Enterobacter spp.…”

Bundled Interventions to Reduce Surgical Site Infections Are Effective and Urgently Needed

“…The study by Loftus et al 1 is an important addition to the literature supporting bundled infection prevention interventions to reduce the burden of surgical site infections (SSIs). The authors prospectively randomized patients undergoing a heterogeneous mix of surgical procedures to receive a standardized perioperative infection prevention bundle vs existing standard of care and followed patients for 60 days.…”

“…What was the cost needed to prevent an infection? What is the value added by this bundled intervention designed to reduce the pathogen reservoir compared with existing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations 3 that target perioperative antibiotic administration and host optimization?Demonstrating a reduction in transmission events and infections was important, but Loftus et al1…”