title: A prospective study of postoperative surgical site infections in dogs and cats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess postoperative surgical site infection (SSI) rate and to identify associated predictive factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective clinical study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Dogs and cats that had surgery (1010 interventions) during 58 weeks from April 1999 to June 2000.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data sheets were completed by clinicians. Patients were controlled for clinical evidence of SSI at suture removal. Two definitions of SSI ("infection" and "infection/inflammation") were developed specifically for this study and used for statistical analysis. Logistic regression models were built in order to identify significant predictive factors for SSI.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Wounds with "infection/inflammation" occurred in 5.8% and "infected" wounds in 3% of patients. The outcome "infection" was associated with 3 major risk factors (duration of surgery, increasing number of persons in the operating room, dirty surgical site) and 1 protective factor (antimicrobial prophylaxis). The outcome "infection/inflammation" was associated with 6 significant factors (duration of anesthesia, duration of postoperative intensive care unit stay, wound drainage, increasing patient weight, dirty surgical site, and antimicrobial prophylaxis).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  SSI frequency in companion animals is comparable with the frequency observed in human surgical patients. Several significant predictive factors for SSI in small animals surgery were identified.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Baseline information for SSI surveillance in our hospital and for comparison with other studies was defined. The factors identified may help to predict infections in surgical patients and to take adequate preventive measures for patients at risk.
authors.affiliation: Division of Surgery, Companion Animal Hospital, Department for Clinical Veterinary Medicine, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eugster
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Schawalder
authors.forename: Frédéric
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gaschen
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Boerlin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000601:surgery; D002415:Cats; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000662:veterinary*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000601:surgery; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000662:veterinary*; D013557:Switzerland / Q000453:epidemiology