PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

New study identifies key risk factors for surgical site infection following commonly performed surgery

Open surgery, prolonged procedures, obesity, diabetes, and younger age are associated with higher risk of infection following abdominal hysterectomy

2023-03-30
(Press-News.org) Arlington, Va., March 30, 2023 – Findings from an analysis of more than 66,000 abdominal hysterectomies performed in New York hospitals reveal key risk factors for surgical site infections (SSIs) following these procedures, including open surgery, obesity, diabetes, gynecological cancer, and age under 45. Published today in the American Journal of Infection Control (AJIC), the data can help inform surgical and clinical decisions to reduce post-operative infections.

“Improved understanding of patient-related, clinical, and surgical factors associated with SSI in hysterectomy, a common surgical procedure in the United States, could help to reduce infections and improve risk models,” said Boldtsetseg Tserenpuntsag, DrPH, Director - Data Unit, Bureau of Healthcare Associated Infections, New York State Department of Health, and the lead author on the published study. “As far as we know, our findings are derived from the most comprehensive dataset to date, making them more generalizable as compared to previous studies on this subject.”

SSIs are infections that occur at a surgical incision site within 30 days after the incision is made. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, SSI accounts for 20% of all healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and is associated with a 2-to 11-fold increase in the risk of mortality. SSI is also the most costly type of HAI with an estimated annual cost of $3.3 billion.

To identify the risk factors for SSI after abdominal hysterectomy, Dr. Tserenpuntsag, and colleagues used data reported in the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) from 66,001 abdominal hysterectomies performed over four years at all acute care hospitals in New York State (166). They augmented these data with diagnosis codes available in administrative data.

Among the 66,001 procedures the researchers analyzed, 1,093 (1.66%) SSIs were reported. After adjusting for other risk factors, the analysis showed that patients with the following independent risk factors were significantly more likely to experience an SSI:

Age under 45: Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of 1.65 (age under 35) and 1.21 (age 35-44) Open laparotomic approach (i.e., not laparoscopic): AOR of 2.75 Contaminated/dirty wound classification: AOR of 2.28 Obesity (body mass index >30): AOR of 1.78 Procedure time greater than 186 minutes: AOR of 1.78 American Society of Anesthesia (ASA) score >3: AOR of 1.74 Having gynecological cancer: AOR of 1.54 Having diabetes: AOR of 1.46 “Given the size and rigor of this analysis, the findings contribute meaningfully to our understanding of SSI, and should provide valuable information to enhance surgical planning and thereby help prevent post-surgical infections,” said Patricia Jackson, RN, MA, CIC, FAPIC, 2023 APIC president.  

About APIC

Founded in 1972, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) is the leading association for infection preventionists and epidemiologists. With more than 15,000 members, APIC advances the science and practice of infection prevention and control. APIC carries out its mission through research, advocacy, and patient safety; education, credentialing, and certification; and fostering development of the infection prevention and control workforce of the future. Together with our members and partners, we are working toward a safer world through the prevention of infection. Join us and learn more at apic.org.

About AJIC

As the official peer-reviewed journal of APIC, The American Journal of Infection Control (AJIC) is the foremost resource on infection control, epidemiology, infectious diseases, quality management, occupational health, and disease prevention. Published by Elsevier, AJIC also publishes infection control guidelines from APIC and the CDC. AJIC is included in Index Medicus and CINAHL. Visit AJIC at ajicjournal.org.

 

NOTE FOR EDITORS

“Risk Factors for Surgical Site Infection after Total Abdominal Hysterectomy, New York State 2015-2018,” by Boldtsetseg Tserenpuntsag, DrPH, and colleagues at the New York State Department of Health was published online in AJIC on March 30, 2023. The article may be found at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajic.2023.01.016

AUTHORS

Boldtsetseg Tserenpuntsag, DrPH (corresponding author: boldtsetseg.tserenpuntsag@health.ny.gov)

New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA

 

Valerie Haley, PhD

New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA

 

Peggy Ann Hazamy, RN, BSN, CIC (retired)

New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA

 

Antonella Eramo, MS, CIC (retired)

New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA

 

Robin Knab, CLT M (ASCP), CIC

New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA

 

Marie Tsivitis, MPH, CIC, MT (ASCP)

New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA

 

Ernest Clement, MSN, RN, CIC

New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA

# # #

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Limit screen use in children under six, says psychologist

2023-03-30
“Children who are in regular contact with mobile phone screens, tablets or computers are more irritable and have worse attention, memory and concentration than those who do not use them.”  Parents should strictly ration or not allow screen time for children aged under six, according to a leading neuropsychologist in a new book.   Dr Álvaro Bilbao, Ph.D., uses current and established research to highlight how the risk of psychological and behavioral issues increases the ...

Most of world’s salt marshes likely to be underwater by 2100, study concludes

Most of world’s salt marshes likely to be underwater by 2100, study concludes
2023-03-29
By Emily Greenhalgh WOODS HOLE, MASS. -- Cape Cod’s salt marshes are as iconic as they are important. These beautiful, low-lying wetlands are some of the most biologically productive ecosystems on Earth. They play an outsized role in nitrogen cycling, act as carbon sinks, protect coastal development from storm surge, and provide critical habitats and nurseries for many fish, shellfish, and coastal birds. And, according to new research from the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL), more than 90 percent of ...

Insilico Medicine featured in BBC-produced series on biotech breakthroughs

Insilico Medicine featured in BBC-produced series on biotech breakthroughs
2023-03-29
Insilico Medicine (“Insilico”) is featured in the new BBC StoryWorks-produced film series Nature’s Building Blocks made in conjunction with the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO). Through 29 short films, the series showcases science innovations and cutting-edge technological advances that are poised to dramatically improve human life.  Insilico, a generative artificial intelligence (AI)-driven drug discovery company, is featured in a segment focused on democratizing and accelerating ...

A reconstruction of prehistoric temperatures for some of the oldest archaeological sites in North America

A reconstruction of prehistoric temperatures for some of the oldest archaeological sites in North America
2023-03-29
Scientists often look to the past for clues about how Earth’s landscapes might shift under a changing climate, and for insight into the migrations of human communities through time. A new study offers both by providing, for the first time, a reconstruction of prehistoric temperatures for some of the first known North American settlements. The study, published in Quaternary Science Reviews, uses new techniques to examine the past climate of Alaska’s Tanana Valley. With a temperature record that reaches back 14,000 years, researchers now have ...

Mimicking biological enzymes may be key to hydrogen fuel production

Mimicking biological enzymes may be key to hydrogen fuel production
2023-03-29
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — An ancient biological enzyme known as nickel-iron hydrogenase may play a key role in producing hydrogen for a renewables-based energy economy, researchers said. Careful study of the enzyme has led chemists from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to design a synthetic molecule that mimics the hydrogen gas-producing chemical reaction performed by the enzyme. The researchers reported their findings in the journal Nature Communications. Currently, industrial hydrogen is usually produced by separating hydrogen gas molecules from oxygen atoms in water using a process called ...

Ochsner Health named 2023 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award Winner

Ochsner Health named 2023 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award Winner
2023-03-29
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA— Ochsner Health, Louisiana’s largest nonprofit, academic, multi-specialty, healthcare delivery system, has received the 2023 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award (GEWA). This award recognizes the most engaged workplace cultures in the world. After another year of unpredictability in the workplace, Gallup found that Ochsner Health continued to put their employees’ engagement at the center of their business strategy, embedding engagement into their very culture. “Our employees are the reason for the culture of positive engagement at Ochsner Health. From physicians and providers to clinical ...

Heart attack study could change the game in regenerative medicine

Heart attack study could change the game in regenerative medicine
2023-03-29
LA JOLLA, CALIF. Mar 29, 2023 - Sanford Burnham Prebys researchers have identified a group of proteins that could be the secret to cellular reprogramming, an emerging approach in regenerative medicine in which scientists transform cells to repair damaged or injured body tissues. The researchers were able to reprogram damaged heart cells to repair heart injuries in mice following a heart attack. The findings, which appear in the journal Nature Communications, could one day transform the way we treat a variety of diseases, including cardiovascular disease, Parkinson’s ...

Do your headaches happen at the same time of day?

2023-03-29
EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 4 P.M. ET, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 2023   MINNEAPOLIS – Both cluster headache and migraine have strong links to the circadian system, the internal clock that regulates body processes, according to a meta-analysis published in the March 29, 2023, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The meta-analysis included all available studies on cluster headache and migraine that included circadian features. This included information on the timing of headaches during ...

Imaging brain connections can predict improvements in obsessive-compulsive disorder patients after deep brain stimulation

2023-03-29
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a promising therapy for treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). A first-of-its-kind collaborative study led by researchers at Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, and Brigham & Women’s Hospital has found that mapping neural connections in the brains of OCD patients offers key insights that explain the observed improvements in their clinical outcomes after DBS. The study was published in Biological Psychiatry. Neuropsychiatric disorders such as obsessive-compulsive ...

Lab-made antibodies offer potential cure for yellow fever

2023-03-29
PORTLAND, Oregon -- New research from Oregon Health & Science University and collaborators indicates lab-made antibodies may be able to cure people infected with yellow fever, a virus for which there is no treatment. The natural immune response to invading pathogens normally involves making protective proteins called antibodies. A study published today in Science Translational Medicine suggests that a single monoclonal antibody infusion can strengthen the body’s fight against yellow fever. In the study, the yellow fever virus was undetectable in all animals that received monoclonal antibody infusions after being exposed to the virus. “Two ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Prevalence, determinants, and time trends of cardiovascular health in the WHO African region

New study finds that, after a heart attack, women have worse prognosis when treated with beta-blockers

CNIC-led REBOOT clinical trial challenges 40-year-old standard of care for heart attack patients

Systolic blood pressure and microaxial flow pump–associated survival in infarct-related cardiogenic shock

Beta blockers, the standard treatment after a heart attack, may offer no benefit for heart attack patients and women can have worse outcomes

High Mountain Asia’s shrinking glaciers linked to monsoon changes

All DRII-ed up: How do plants recover after drought?

Research on stigma says to just ‘shake it off’

Scientists track lightning “pollution” in real time using NASA satellite

Millions of women rely on contraceptives, but new Rice study shows they may do more than just prevent pregnancy

Hot days make for icy weather, Philippine study finds

Roxana Mehran, MD, receives the most prestigious award given by the European Society of Cardiology

World's first clinical trial showing lubiprostone aids kidney function

Capturing language change through the genes

Public trust in elections increases with clear facts

Thawing permafrost raised carbon dioxide levels after the last ice age

New DNA test reveals plants’ hidden climate role

Retinitis pigmentosa mouse models reflect pathobiology of human RP59

Cell’s ‘antenna’ could be key to curing diseases

Tiny ocean partnership between algae and bacteria reveals secrets of evolution

Scientists uncover cellular “toolkit” to reprogram immune cells for cancer therapy

Blocking protein control pathway slows rhabdomyosarcoma growth in mice

2026 Hertz Fellowship Application Now Open

The gut immune system is altered in mouse model of Alzheimer’s, providing a new target for therapeutics

ADHD drugs are being prescribed too quickly to preschoolers

UCLA scientists develop off-the-shelf immunotherapy for metastatic kidney cancer

Extreme heat linked to spike in domestic violence calls in New Orleans, study finds

Mount Sinai-Duke University study identifies DNA variants that increase testosterone production in PCOS patients

Physiology-guided complete revascularization in older patients with myocardial infarction

Metals and sulfate in air pollution mixture may contribute most to asthma hospitalizations

[Press-News.org] New study identifies key risk factors for surgical site infection following commonly performed surgery
Open surgery, prolonged procedures, obesity, diabetes, and younger age are associated with higher risk of infection following abdominal hysterectomy