How to reduce the risk of surgical infection?

Surgical infection refers to the infection caused by bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms invading wounds or internal tissues during surgical operations.

Surgical infection will pose a serious threat to the health of patients, therefore, it is very important to reduce the risk of surgical infection. This article describes the causes of surgical infection and recommendations for good quality care.

Causes of surgical infection :

1. Age factor. Age is a common factor leading to wound infections in patients. As people age, their body functions will gradually decline, and their autoimmunity will also decrease, resulting in an increase in the probability of infection. At the same time, wounds in older patients heal more slowly, which increases the risk of infection over time.

2. Wound depth factor. The deeper the surgical wound, the more difficult it is to debride the patient. In addition, the deeper the wound, the greater the probability of bleeding, and it is difficult to completely debride the wound for the patient, resulting in a higher probability of wound infection.

3. Surgical site factors. For extremity surgery, poor blood circulation in the distal extremities of the human body will greatly affect the postoperative wound healing speed of the patient. If the wound is not healed for a long time, the probability of wound infection will inevitably increase. In addition, the limbs belong to the main limbs of the human body that are in contact with things. If self-protection is not done well, wound infection will easily occur once contact with bacteria.

4. Patients with infection foci before surgery

Patients may have infection foci before surgery, such as sinusitis, periodontitis, etc. These infection foci can provide a breeding environment for bacteria. If no effective treatment is carried out before surgery, bacteria can easily enter the wound and cause infection during the operation.

5. Infection factors during the operation

During the operation, doctors and nurses need to touch the patient's body and use surgical instruments and surgical sheets. Bacteria may exist in these items. If strict disinfection measures are not taken during the operation, bacteria can easily enter the wound and cause infection.

6. Patients with low immunity

Patients may have a compromised immune system before or after surgery, such as cancer, AIDS, and other diseases. The immune system of these patients is weakened and cannot effectively resist the invasion of bacteria and viruses, resulting in infection.