The role of topical antibiotics used as prophylaxis in surgical site infection prevention

Compared with systemic antibiotic therapy, the topical or local delivery of an antibiotic has many potential advantages. However, local antibiotics at the surgical site have received very limited approval in any of the surgical prophylaxis consensus guidelines that we are aware of. A review of the l...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy 2011-04, Vol.66 (4), p.693-701
Main Authors: MCHUGH, S. M, COLLINS, C. J, CORRIGAN, M. A, HILL, A. D. K, HUMPHREYS, H
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abdominal surgery
Anti-Infective Agents, Local - therapeutic use
Antibiotic Prophylaxis - methods
Antibiotics
Antibiotics. Antiinfectious agents. Antiparasitic agents
Biological and medical sciences
Disease prevention
Drug therapy
General aspects
Human infectious diseases. Experimental studies and models
Humans
Infectious diseases
Joint surgery
Medical sciences
Meta-analysis
Nosocomial infections
Pharmacology. Drug treatments
Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
Studies
Surgical Wound Infection - prevention & control
Treatment Outcome
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Compared with systemic antibiotic therapy, the topical or local delivery of an antibiotic has many potential advantages. However, local antibiotics at the surgical site have received very limited approval in any of the surgical prophylaxis consensus guidelines that we are aware of. A review of the literature was carried out through searches of peer-reviewed publications in PubMed in the English language over a 30 year period between January 1980 and May 2010. Both retrospective and prospective studies were included, as well as meta-analyses. With regard to defining 'topical' or 'local' antibiotic application, the application of an antibiotic solution to the surgical site intraoperatively or immediately post-operatively was included. A number of surgical procedures have been shown to significantly benefit from perioperative topical prophylaxis, e.g. joint arthroplasty, cataract surgery and, possibly, breast augmentation. In obese patients undergoing abdominal surgery, topical surgical prophylaxis is also proven to be beneficial. The selective use of topical antibiotics as surgical prophylaxis is justified for specific procedures, such as joint arthroplasty, cataract surgery and, possibly, breast augmentation. In selective cases, such as obese patients undergoing abdominal surgery, topical surgical prophylaxis is also proven to be beneficial. Apart from these specific indications, the evidence for use of topical antibiotics in surgery is lacking in conclusive randomized controlled trials.
ISSN:0305-7453
1460-2091
DOI:10.1093/jac/dkr009