An observational study of perioperative antibiotic-prophylaxis use at a major quaternary care and referral hospital in Saudi Arabia

CONTEXT: The use of perioperative antimicrobial prophylaxis has been consistently considered an effective means of reducing the risk of surgical site infections. However, inappropriate use of surgical antibiotic prophylaxis is associated with complications such as reduced treatment efficacy, development of antibiotic resistance, and increased health-care costs. AIMS: The aim of this study is to investigate the adherence to international/national guidelines regarding the use of surgical antibiotic prophylaxis in the perioperative period. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre (KFSH&RC) a 1589-bed tertiary/quaternary care and referral hospital based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A retrospective observational study, in which antibiotic prophylaxis parameters were assessed against recommendations provided by international/national guidelines in elective/emergency procedures performed at the general operating suite. Data was obtained from the medical records starting of 174 cases over a period of 2 weeks in May 2016. RESULTS: Preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis (PAP) was prescribed for 118 (78.7%) patients, 72 (61%) of which were “recommended,” whereas 46 (39%) were “not recommended.” Of the 72 patients for whom the antibiotics were “recommended” and given, 19 (26.4%) received “inadequate” choice of antibiotics, 50 (69.4%) received a sub-therapeutic dose, 14 (19.4%) had “improper” timing of the first dose, 11 (15.3%) were given an “inappropriate” second intraoperative dose, and 43 (59.7%) had an unnecessarily extended duration of prophylaxis. The overall compliance to guidelines was achieved in only 23 (15.3%) patients. CONCLUSIONS: A significant gap between current KFSH & RC practice and international/national guidelines regarding surgical antibiotic prophylaxis usage has been demonstrated which calls for immediate action to ensure effective guideline adoption and implementation.