Photo Credit: Hanna Sova

The following is a summary of “Infectious complications following major heart surgery from the day of the surgery to hospital discharge,” published in the January 2024 issue of Infectious Disease by Pérez-Granda et al.

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to uncover the true incidence of infection following major heart surgery (MHS), accounting for potential biases in existing data.

They gathered data on nosocomial infection incidence from surgery to hospital discharge in a cohort of 800 consecutive adults undergoing MHS.

The results showed 124 participants (out of 800) experienced infections during postoperative hospitalization (15.5%): 54.8% in ICU, 40.3% post-ICU in the general ward, and 4.8% in both wards. Common infections included pneumonia (related or not to mechanical ventilation), surgical site, and bloodstream. Isolated pathogens comprised primarily Gram-negative bacilli (54.4%), followed by Gram-positive bacteria (30%), viruses (4.6%), and fungi (1.5%). The cohort saw an all-cause mortality rate of 4.1%, with 1.1% attributed to infection-related deaths. Among those with infections, overall mortality reached 13.7%, contrasting with a 2.3% mortality rate in those without infections.

Investigators concluded that MHS patients face a high risk of infection throughout their stay, not just during specific procedures or in the ICU. Studies should consider all diseases, not just a subset.

Source: bmcinfectdis.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12879-023-08972-9