Abstract
BackgroundDespite being largely preventable, surgical site infections (SSIs) are still one of the most frequent healthcare-associated infections. The presence of resistant pathogens can further augment their clinical and economic impacts. The objective was to estimate the distribution and resistance in SSI pathogens in Saudi Arabia and to compare them to the US National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) hospitals.MethodsTargeted SSI surveillance was prospectively conducted on several surgical procedures done between 2007 and 2016 in four hospitals of Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs. Definitions and methodology of SSI and bacterial resistance were based on NHSN.ResultsA total 492 pathogens causing 403 SSI events were included. The most frequent pathogens were Staphylococcus aureus (22.8%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (20.1%), Klebsiella spp. (12.2%), and Escherichia coli (12.2%), with marked variability between surgeries. Approximately 30.3% of Staphylococcus aureus was methicillin-resistant (MRSA), 13.0% of Enterococcus spp. was vancomycin-resistant (VRE), and 5.5% of Enterobacteriaceae were carbapenem resistant (CRE). The highest multidrug-resistant (MDR) GNPs were Acinetobacter spp. (58.3%), Klebsiella spp. (20.4%) and Escherichia coli (16.3%). MRSA was significantly less frequent while cephalosporin-resistant Klebsiella spp., MDR Klebsiella spp., and MDR Escherichia coli were significantly more frequent in our hospitals compared with NHSN hospitals.ConclusionGNPs in a tertiary care setting in Saudi Arabia are responsible for more than 60% of SSI with more resistant patterns than Western countries. This information may be critical to secure resources and ensure support for caregivers and healthcare leaders in implementing antimicrobial stewardship programs and evidence-based SSI preventive practices.
Highlights
Despite being largely preventable, surgical site infections (SSIs) are still one of the most frequent healthcare-associated infections
Setting Data were collected from four Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs (MNGHA) hospitals; King Abdulaziz Medical City-Riyadh (KAMC-R), King Abdulaziz Medical City-Jeddah (KAMC-J), King Abdulaziz Hospital-Alhassa (KAH), Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal Hospital-Dammam (IABFH)
30.5% of SSI events were diagnosed before discharge
Summary
Surgical site infections (SSIs) are still one of the most frequent healthcare-associated infections. The presence of resistant pathogens can further augment their clinical and economic impacts. The objective was to estimate the distribution and resistance in SSI pathogens in Saudi Arabia and to compare them to the US National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) hospitals. Surgical site infection (SSI) is a global healthcare problem increasing patient morbidity, mortality, and healthcare cost [1, 2]. Despite the fact that more than 50% are preventable [3], SSI remains the most frequent healthcareassociated infections (HAIs) in low and middle income countries, affecting up to 30% of the patients undergoing surgery [1, 4]. The presence of resistant pathogens has been shown to augment the clinical and economic impacts of SSI [7]. Recent SSI guidelines stressed on the appropriate use of antimicrobial prophylaxis to reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance [6]
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