Predictors of Surgical site infections among patients undergoing open urological surgery at a Tertiary hospital, Tanzania: A cross sectional study
Abstract Background Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the major hospital acquired infections highly associated with prolonged hospitalization, morbidity and mortality. In open urological surgeries, little is known on magnitude and factors associated with development of SSI. Methods and Materials This was a cross-sectional prospective observational study performed between August 2015 and March 2016 at Muhimbili National hospital (MNH), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. All patients who underwent open urological surgery and met inclusion criteria were consecutively enrolled, and followed up for 30 days. Patients´ and operative characteristics were recorded using standard structured questionnaires. Wound/ pus swabs were collected from patients with clinical evidence of SSI for bacteriological processing. Data analysis was performed using SPSS version 20. Results Of 182 patients who underwent open urological surgery, 22% developed SSI. Pre-operative urinary tract infection (aOR 9.73, 95%CI 3.93-24.09, p<0.001) and contaminated wound class (aOR 24.997, 95%CI 2.58-242.42, p = 0.005) were independent predictors for development of SSI. Shaving within 30 hrs before surgical procedure was found to be protective for developing SSI (aOR 0.26, 95%CI 0.09-0.79, p = 0.02). Escherichia coli (20/40) was the most predominant pathogen in SSI followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae (7/40) and S. aureus (6/40). Gram-negative bacteria were highly resistant to ceftriaxone, gentamicin, amoxicillin-clavulanic acid and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Conclusion SSI was high in open urological interventions. Pre-operative urinary tract infection and contaminated wound class predicted SSI. Bacteria causing SSI were highly resistant to commonly used antibiotics.