A STUDY ON THE POST SURGICAL WOUND INFECTIONS IN A TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL IN KANCHIPURAM

BACKGROUND Surgical site infections are the infections that occur within thirty days after the operative procedure (Except in case of added implants). Surgical site infections are the 3rd most commonly reported nosocomial infections accounting for a quarter of all such infections. A wide range of organisms are known to infect wounds like gram positive cocci, gram negative bacilli, spore formers, aerobes and anaerobes. Despite the advances in operative technique and better understanding of the pathogenesis of wound infections and wound healing, surgical site infections still remain a major source of morbidity and mortality. Hence, this study was done to identify the aetiological bacterial agents and their antibiogram pattern and the risk factors associated with surgical site infections. METHODS Wounds were examined for signs and symptoms of infection in postoperative ward. All the pus swabs were processed and identified as per standard methods of identification. Antibiogram was performed as per CLSI guidelines. The isolates were screened and confirmed with double disc diffusion method using CLSI guidelines. RESULTS The rate of surgical site infections in our study was 8.3%. The rate of surgical site infections was higher (73.3%) in emergency surgeries than the elective surgeries. E. coli was the commonest isolate among gram negative bacilli; 33.3% isolates of E. coli were ESBL procedures. E. coli were sensitive to cefepime and ciprofloxacin and showed maximum resistance to ampicillin and ceftazidime. All the E. coli were sensitive to imipenem.