Infection Control in Anesthesia

Anasthesiol Intensivmed Notfallmed Schmerzther. 2021 Jul;56(7-08):474-484. doi: 10.1055/a-1249-5093. Epub 2021 Jul 23.ABSTRACTThe anaesthesiological care of patients in the operating room involves many activities that can lead to an infection. Hand hygiene is the most effective single measure for the prevention of nosocomial infections. Hand disinfectant dispensers should be placed within easy reach. When preparing infusions and drugs to be administered intravenously, the introduction of microorganisms cannot be completely ruled out, even if all hygienic requirements are observed. Therefore, parenterals without preservatives may only be removed immediately before administration, not several times from the same container and not for several patients. For punctures for regional anaesthesia and for the placement of vascular catheters, the highest hygiene requirements apply when long seldinger wires are used or when catheters are placed in deep tissue spaces or body cavities. The timely application of antibiotic prophylaxis is one of the most important measures in perioperative infection prevention. Indications and choice of substance should be defined in an in-house guideline. Maintaining a balanced volume, body temperature and blood sugar level contributes to the prophylaxis of surgical site infections. The preparation of an operating room after an operation must always ensure that it does not pose a risk of infection for the following patient - regardless of the pathogens with...
Source: Anasthesiologie, Intensivmedizin, Notfallmedizin, Schmerztherapie : AINS - Category: Intensive Care Authors: Source Type: research