Practical Guidelines for the Appropriate Use of Antimicrobial Agents for Prevention of Surgical Site Infection in Various Neurosurgical Fields

Abstract

Preoperative shaving and disinfection; postoperative wound care; and preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative antibiotic use are the main methods used to prevent perioperative surgical site infection(SSI); however, a survey of neurosurgeons in Japan did not indicate that these guidelines were followed. There are several types of surgical procedures in the field of neurosurgery, including implant insertion, with little evidence of use of antimicrobial agents in such surgeries. Hence, there had been no guidelines for antimicrobial use in neurosurgery in Japan. However, practice guidelines for the appropriate use of antimicrobial agents for the prevention of postoperative infection in neurosurgery were published in 2020 and are discussed in this section.