Efficacy of a Shortened Oral Antibiotic Bowel Decontamination in Minimally Invasive Surgery for Diverticular Disease.

INTRODUCTION

Infectious complications, such as anastomotic leakage (AL) and surgical site infections (SSIs), remain a significant challenge in colorectal surgery. Consequently, there is growing interest in oral antibiotic bowel decontamination with nonabsorbable antibiotics (selective digestive decontamination or SDD), which can reduce perioperative complications while also minimizing antibiotic use. This study aimed to determine whether a 3-day SDD regimen is as effective as a 7-day regimen in preventing postoperative complications in laparoscopic diverticular surgery.

METHODS

A bicenter data analysis of prospectively and retrospectively collected patient data was performed. A 3-day versus 7-day perioperative use of an SDD-based regimen (polymyxin B, gentamicin, vancomycin, and amphotericin B) in patients undergoing minimally invasive surgery for diverticular disease was compared using noninferiority analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 469 patients were included in the analysis: 101 patients received a 3-day perioperative SDD regimen, while 368 patients received a 7-day regimen. Due to the use of routine clinical data, no control cohort is available. The overall complication rate was 16.5% in both groups. AL and SSI occurred in 2.0% and 6.0% of the 3-day group, and in 1.4% and 6.3% of the 7-day group, respectively, with no significant differences between the groups. However, for wound infections and overall infectious complications, the 3-day regimen can be considered noninferior to the 7-day regimen. Our data did not confirm the noninferiority of the SDD3 regimen compared to the SDD7 regimen for AL.

DISCUSSION

We report low rates of AL and other surgical and nonsurgical complications in minimally invasive diverticular disease surgery. The low complication rates demonstrate noninferiority regarding SSI. Our findings are consistent with recent evidence, highlighting the positive impact of perioperative SDD treatment on SSI and infectious complications.