surgical site infection


surgical site infection

Surgery Any superficial infection that occurs at the site of a surgical incision Surgical site infection classes Clean wound–75% of all surgery; nontraumatic wound; noninflamed; no break in technique; no entry into the GI, GU, respiratory tracts, or oropharynx; infection rate < 5%, usually ±1% II Clean-contaminated wound; minimal break in surgical technique; infection rate < 10% III Contaminated wound: open, fresh, traumatic wound from relatively clean source, or major break in surgical technique; infection rate < 20% IV Dirty and/or infected wound with devitalized and/or necrotic tissue; infection rate 30–40%

surgical site infection

An infection that occurs within thirty days of an operation, either at the suture line, just beneath it, or in internal organs and spaces that were operated upon. Synonym: surgical wound infectionSee also: infection