Mostafa Refaie ELKELENY, Hassan Isah ABUBAKAR, Abdelhamid Ahmed GHAZAL, Mohamed MOURAD
Journal of Comprehensive Surgery - 2026;4(3):54-60
Aims: Surgical site infection (SSI) remains a significant cause of morbidity and financial burden on patients. This study aimed to describe the incidence and risk factors associated with developing SSI in adult patients after abdominal surgery. Methods: In this 6-month prospective observational study, adult patients undergoing abdominal surgery at the gastrointestinal surgery unit of our tertiary referral center were included. Excluded from the study were patients lost to follow-up; additionally, this study does not include urological, gynecological, vascular, plastic, or transplant surgeries. Patients were followed up for 30 days, data collection was done using a standardized data collection form, and SSI was diagnosed according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention definition. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify risk factors for SSI. Results: The study included a total of 212 patients. The incidence of SSI was 32.5%. Emergency operations, male gender, and high body-mass index were identified as independent predictors of SSI. The most commonly isolated organisms in analyzed cultures were Klebsiella spp. Conclusion: A high rate of SSI following abdominal surgery was observed. Periodic audits to assess compliance with established standard infection control measures, review of prophylactic antibiotic guidelines, as well as addressing modifiable risk factors have the prospect of reducing SSI.
