Risk of infection following penetrating abdominal trauma: a selective review.

Post-operative infectious complications following penetrating abdominal trauma are a major cause of morbidity and contribute significantly to increased length of hospitalization and costs of patient care. Our recent study suggests the individual patient's probability of major infection following traumatic intestinal perforation is high and can be predicted from risk factors identified at the time of surgery. The determinant of primary importance for development of infection confirmed by this study is peritoneal contamination by intestinal contents. Other significant risk factors (p less than 0.05) were number of organs injured, number of units of blood administered, ostomy formation for left colon injury, and the patient's age. Risk of infection can be calculated from these data and could potentially be used to guide post-operative decisions. Areas of trauma care in which alteration of therapy might result in significant savings include choice of antibiotics, duration of antibiotic administration, and wound management. This study supports the use of standardized operative procedures and parenteral antibiotics effective against endogenous aerobic and anaerobic organisms. If such observations continue to be supported by further randomized prospective studies, there is tremendous potential to further tailor surgical management for the individual patient in a more cost-effective manner.