Surgical site infection following hernia repair in the day care setting of a developing country: A retrospective review

Objective: To determine the incidence proportion of surgical site infection following hernia repair in a daycare setting at a tertiary care hospital of a low-income country.Methods: The retrospective audit was done at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from June 1, 2008 to May 30, 2009. Patients with age \u3e15 years who underwent Lichenstein\u27s open mesh repair in daycare were included. Surgical Site Infection was labelled if the records revealed any of the following: opening of the wound by the primary surgeon; pain, tenderness and raised temperature of skin; purulent discharge from the wound; if the surgeon had documented it as a surgical site infection. SPSS 16 was used for data analysis.Results: After reviewing the retrieved files, 104 patients were found eligible. Of them, 102 (98%) were males. Overall wound-related complications were found in 13 (12.5%), whereas surgical site infection was found in 8 (7.7%) patients. The mean age of those with infections was 38.7+/-8 year, while that of those with no surgical site infection was 47.8+/-18 years. Smoking was found significantly associated with surgical site infection with 5.8 times higher incidence as compared to the non-smokers [OR with 95% CI: 5.6 (1.2, 25.3)].Conclusions: The incidence of surgical site infection after hernia repair with mesh in a daycare setting at a tertiary care hospital of a low-income country was higher than internationally reported incidence. Smoking was found to be a significant risk factor