Pediatric wound infections: a prospective multicenter study

Abstract

Objective: Surgical wound infections remain a significant source of postoperative morbidity. This study was undertaken to determine prospectively the incidence of postoperative wound infections in children in a multi-institutional fashion and to identify the risk factors associated with the development of a wound infection in this population.

Summary background data: Despite a large body of literature in adults, there have been only two reports from North America concerning postoperative wound infections in children.

Methods: All infants and children undergoing operation on the pediatric surgical services of three institutions during a 17-month period were prospectively followed for 30 days after surgery for the development of a wound infection.

Results: A total of 846 of 1021 patients were followed for 30 days. The overall incidence of wound infection was 4.4%. Factors found to be significantly associated with a postoperative wound infection were the amount of contamination at operation (p = 0.006) and the duration of the operation (p = 0.03). Comparing children who developed a wound infection with those who did not, there were no significant differences in age, sex, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) preoperative assessment score, length of preoperative hospitalization, location of operation (intensive care unit vs. operating room), presence of a coexisting disease or remote infection, or the use of perioperative antibiotics.

Conclusions: Our results suggest that wound infections in children are related more to the factors at operation than to the overall physiologic status. Procedures can be performed in the intensive care unit without any increase in the incidence of wound infection.