Infectious complications of cardiac surgery: A clinical review

摘要

INFECTIOUS COMPLICATIONS after cardiac surgery occur in 5% to 21% of cases.1-2 Major infectious complications increase postoperative mortality by more than 5 times and prolong recovery.2'3 Forty-seven percent of these patients require more than 14 days in the hospital compared with 5.9% (p < 0.0001) of patients without a major infection.3 As a result, infectious complications substantially increase the cost of care.4 However, infectious complications can be reduced with many simple interventions, starting with risk factor modification at the first anesthetic preoperative screening visit right through to postoperative risk factor vigilance in the intensive care unit (ICU).