title: Antibiotic prophylaxis in lower limb amputation.
abstract: We have prospectively studied the effect of 1-day prophylactic antibiotic therapy in lower-limb amputation for ischaemia. Twenty-seven patients were treated with Meticillin 1 g X 4 intravenously on the day of operation; 23 control patients did not receive any antibiotics. Eight patients in the control group had postoperative wound infections compared to none in the Meticillin group. Seven patients were re-amputated because of infection. Preoperatively, Staphylococcus aureus was isolated in 5/8 of the patients in the Meticillin and 6/8 in the control group. In the postoperatively infected stumps, S. aureus occurred in 6/8 of the patients in the control group, and one patient developed gas gangrene.
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000671:Amputation, Surgical; D005260:Female; D005734:Gangrene / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007866:Leg / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D008712:Methicillin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011292:Premedication; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011897:Random Allocation; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000517:prevention & control*
chemical_list: D008712:Methicillin