Patient selection: general surgical patient
Outcome: surgical site infection (SSI) - superficial, deep, organ/space
Prevalence of SSI: 3.1%
Risk factors for SSI:
(1) history of a previous operation (i.e., re-operation)
(2) duration of operation >= 75th percentile for the procedure
(3) hypoalbuminemia (serum hemoglobin <= 3.4 g/dL)
(4) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
where:
• The 75th percentile is fairly close to mean plus 1 standard deviation (z score +1.0)
Risk factors for deep or organ/space SSI:
(1) history of a previous operation (i.e., re-operation)
(2) hypoalbuminemia (serum albumin <= 3.4 g/dL)
The risk increases with the number of risk factors present. A patient with risk factors who is undergoing elective surgery may benefit from interventions that address the risk factors.
