Antibiotic prophylaxis in surgery

Abstract

Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the leading causes of hospital infections. Besides increasing the morbidity and mortality, these infections increase the duration of hospitalization, antibiotic usage and the cost of healthcare. Antimicrobial prophylaxis is one of the applications to prevent SSI. Although there are clear recommendations, inappropriate usage of antibiotics is a common practice in antimicrobial prophylaxis. Inappropriate usage of an antibiotic in this field has many side effects, including the development of antimicrobial resistance. Therefore, basic knowledge about prophylaxis and its implementation has a crucial importance in appropriate antibiotic usage. In this review, antimicrobial prophylaxis has been overviewed in the light of the current recommendations.