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We talked with Dr. Steve Sears, the Chief Medical officer for MaineGeneral Health in Augusta and a specialist in treating infections, about why antibiotics before some surgeries are so important. Here's what we learned.
What's the worry about infection with surgery?Dr. Sears explains: Even with just an everyday cut there's a chance for infection. There are always germs (bacteria) on the skin. When the skin is broken, they can enter the body. You probably know that before surgery, the surgical site is "swabbed" to kill the germs on the skin. Giving antibiotics before certain surgeries adds extra needed protection to prevent infection. How important is it to get the antibiotics within the one hour before surgery?Dr. Sears explains: To be completely honest, different studies have shown different results, but as far as we know, giving the antibiotic within 1 hour before the cut is the way to get the most infection-fighting power. Sometimes patients get the antibiotics within 2 hours of surgery. It can be hard for a hospital to time it within just 1 hour due to many patients and many surgeries, or because of an emergency. |
Suppose my doctor says they have never had an infection and don't see any need to use antibiotics ahead of time?Dr. Sears explains: Ask your doctor to explain any refusal to use antibiotics for YOU for the surgeries listed below. Make sure you understand what the doctor says. It's not possible for any one surgeon to know from personal experience whether using antibiotics before surgery is a good standard to follow. The research comes from large national studies. The research proves that it IS a good standard in almost all cases. But aren't there risks in using antibiotics? Can't they be dangerous?Dr. Sears explains: All medicines have risks. All medicines for each patient must be checked to make sure the patient isn't allergic and that all medicines work fine together. Suppose we were choosing a hospital to have hip surgery. If we noticed from the chart on this website that the hospital used antibiotics within 1 hour before this surgery only 40% of the time, what should we do?Dr. Sears explains: Tell the hospital staff you want to be part of the 40% that gets antibiotics within 1 hour! |