Prevention of postoperative infections
Last reviewed: 28.11.2021
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WHO has developed a new series of recommendations that will help save lives after surgery, as well as reduce hospital costs and reduce the threatening spread of antibacterial resistance in the world. The new recommendations contain 29 items, over which 2 dozens of world experts worked, their conclusions were based on the latest scientific research.
Experts said that during the preparation for the operation the patient should take a shower (bath), do not use shaving accessories, physicians, in turn, you need to prescribe antibacterial drugs only before and during the operation, but not after. The need to issue a new guide is caused by the acute problem of hospital infections, which affects not only patients and their loved ones, but also health care systems.
The Assistant Director-General of WHO in her speech noted that it is impossible to admit that after consulting a doctor, the patient received a more serious illness. Prevention of infections after surgical interventions is extremely important, but this process requires an integrated approach.
Infection in the body of the patient begins to develop after the entry of bacteria into the body through the incisions made. Annually such infections lead to a threat to the lives of millions of patients, and this also contributes to the development of antibacterial resistance. According to statistics, 11% of patients who have performed these or those operations are infected with various infectious diseases (mainly in countries with an average or low standard of living). In African countries, 20% of women who had a cesarean section developed a wound infection. But infections after surgical interventions are a problem not only for poor countries, in the US, because of this, 400,000 people are forced to spend an additional few days in the hospital, which increases the cost of their maintenance in the hospital.
In the new recommendations, specialists described pre-operative actions and preventive measures during and after surgery. The manual contains a fairly wide range of actions: from the simplest methods of precaution (bathing before surgery, hygiene by surgeons and assistants, etc.) to recommendations at what point should antibiotics be used to prevent the development of infection, which antibiotics, antiseptics, sutures and others.
None of us is insured against the operation and the infection on the operating table threatens everyone, regardless of social status, income level, gender, etc. The new recommendations will help doctors to minimize the risk of infections, improve the quality of patient care and reduce the spread of antibacterial resistance. WHO specialists noted that every patient before surgery should ask his surgeon if he should follow the new recommendations.
It is worth noting that the new recommendations are the first, which are based on factual data, and in existing guidelines there are some inconsistencies between the actual data and the recommended actions.
The new version was compiled taking into account the available scientific data, the estimated monetary and other costs for implementing recommendations in medical institutions, and also taking into account the interests of patients.
The WHO noted that today the main task is to stop the spread of antibacterial resistance and in new recommendations the key moment is the use of antibiotics only before and during the operation. Often, such drugs are prescribed after surgery, which, according to experts, is absolutely not necessary. According to selective studies conducted in Africa, the new recommendations will reduce the number of cases of postoperative infections by almost 40%. WHO is now preparing instructions to introduce new recommendations into practice.
Prevention of postoperative infections
WHO has developed a new series of recommendations that will help save lives after surgery, as well as reduce hospital costs and reduce the threatening spread of antibacterial resistance in the world. The new recommendations contain 29 items, over which 2 dozens of world experts worked, their conclusions were based on the latest scientific research.
Experts said that during the preparation for the operation the patient should take a shower (bath), do not use shaving accessories, physicians, in turn, you need to prescribe antibacterial drugs only before and during the operation, but not after. The need to issue a new guide is caused by the acute problem of hospital infections, which affects not only patients and their loved ones, but also health care systems.
The Assistant Director-General of WHO in her speech noted that it is impossible to admit that after consulting a doctor, the patient received a more serious illness. Prevention of infections after surgical interventions is extremely important, but this process requires an integrated approach.
Infection in the body of the patient begins to develop after the entry of bacteria into the body through the incisions made. Annually such infections lead to a threat to the lives of millions of patients, and this also contributes to the development of antibacterial resistance. According to statistics, 11% of patients who have performed these or those operations are infected with various infectious diseases (mainly in countries with an average or low standard of living). In African countries, 20% of women who had a cesarean section developed a wound infection. But infections after surgical interventions are a problem not only for poor countries, in the US, because of this, 400,000 people are forced to spend an additional few days in the hospital, which increases the cost of their maintenance in the hospital.
In the new recommendations, specialists described pre-operative actions and preventive measures during and after surgery. The manual contains a fairly wide range of actions: from the simplest methods of precaution (bathing before surgery, hygiene by surgeons and assistants, etc.) to recommendations at what point should antibiotics be used to prevent the development of infection, which antibiotics, antiseptics, sutures and others.
None of us is insured against the operation and the infection on the operating table threatens everyone, regardless of social status, income level, gender, etc. The new recommendations will help doctors to minimize the risk of infections, improve the quality of patient care and reduce the spread of antibacterial resistance. WHO specialists noted that every patient before surgery should ask his surgeon if he should follow the new recommendations.
It is worth noting that the new recommendations are the first, which are based on factual data, and in existing guidelines there are some inconsistencies between the actual data and the recommended actions.
The new version was compiled taking into account the available scientific data, the estimated monetary and other costs for implementing recommendations in medical institutions, and also taking into account the interests of patients.
The WHO noted that today the main task is to stop the spread of antibacterial resistance and in new recommendations the key moment is the use of antibiotics only before and during the operation. Often, such drugs are prescribed after surgery, which, according to experts, is absolutely not necessary. According to selective studies conducted in Africa, the new recommendations will reduce the number of cases of postoperative infections by almost 40%. WHO is now preparing instructions to introduce new recommendations into practice.