Epidemiology and Risk Factors of Post Operative Site Infections in Surgical Patients: A Systematic Review

Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the most common and serious hospital-acquired infections all over the world. The SSI can lead to an increase in morbidity, mortality, and increase in the duration of hospital stay among patients. The present systematic review was planned to find the epidemiological features, prevalence, causative organisms, and predisposing risk factors for the development of postoperative infections among surgical patients of all the six WHO regions. Initially, 281 articles were identified through specified databases. Finally, 18 articles that fulfilled all inclusions and exclusion criteria are included. For the risk factors assessment, p-values, odds ratio were considered. In general, the occurrence rate of SSI ranges from 2% to 17.8%. Regarding causative organisms, three microorganisms are commonly reported in most of the studies were Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumonia, and E.Coli. Among the different procedures reviewed, incidence and prevalence rates were higher among emergency surgical procedures and lower among obstetrics and gynecology procedures. Longer preoperative duration of stays in hospital decreased Hb and serum albumin level, comorbid conditions such as diabetes, hypertension are potential risk factors for the development of SSI. The occurrence rate of SSI among post-operative patients is very high, especially in developing countries. This leads to a double burden on the healthcare delivery settings during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is essential to include a strict infection control policy, fair usage of antibiotics practices to be implemented. It is also recommended to control comorbid conditions before planning for elective surgery.