title: Intensive hyperglycemia control reduces postoperative infections after open heart surgery.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Diabetes mellitus increases the risk of infections in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. We hypothesized that intensive perioperative hyperglycemia control by intravenous insulin infusion reduces postoperative infections in all patients undergoing open heart surgical procedures.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty diabetics patients who underwent CABG operation (Group 1) were compared with fifty-five patients who underwent other cardiac surgery (Group 2) between January 2004 and March 2005. A continuous infusion of insulin was used in all these patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no 30-day mortalities in either group. There was no difference in the incidence of infections between the two groups: in Group 1, 3 (5%) patients were diagnosed to have postoperative infection (superficial sternal wound infections in 1 (1.66%) and lung infection in 2 (3.33%) patients); postoperative infection occurred in only 2 patients (3.63%) in Group 2, 1 superficial sternal wound infections (1.81%) and 1 lung infection (1.81%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our analysis indicates that continuous intravenous insulin infusion improves outcome and reduces postoperative infections in patients undergoing CABG as well as those undergoing other cardiac surgery procedures.
authors: Department of Cardiac Surgery, St. Andrea Hospital, University of Rome "La Sapienza", Rome - Italy.
authors: Fabio
authors: F
authors: Capuano
authors: Antonino
authors: A
authors: Roscitano
authors: Caterina
authors: C
authors: Simon
authors: Gianluca
authors: G
authors: Sclafani
authors: Umberto
authors: U
authors: Benedetto
authors: Cosimo
authors: C
authors: Comito
authors: Euclide
authors: E
authors: Tonelli
authors: Riccardo
authors: R
authors: Sinatra