Researchers analyzed the surgical site infection incidence ratio, time of occurrence and risk factors in postpartum women who had a cesarean section in a recent study published in the American Journal of Infection Control.
"[C-section] is a surgical procedure the main complication of which is surgical site infection, which is related to maternal morbidity and mortality," according to the study.
The research team conducted their surveillance via telephone from 2013 to 2014, calling more than 350 women at least 30 days after their cesarean delivery. Highlighted below are three findings from the study.
1. All total, 14 cases (4 percent) reported an SSI. The most common type of infection was a superficial incisional SSI.
2. Ten of the reported SSI cases (7.4 percent) occurred within 15 days after C-section and the average time of infection was 12.21 days.
3. American Society of Anesthesiologists score was the only risk factor associated with SSI after cesarean section — an ASA score of 2 or less was protective against SSI.
"Telephone calls can be a viable method to identify women with infection briefly after discharge, particularly at-risk patients," the study authors concluded.
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