Risk of surgical site infection in hand trauma, and the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: A cohort study

BACKGROUND: Despite the ubiquity of hand trauma, there remains insufficient published data to reliably inform these patients of surgical site infection (SSI) risk. We describe the risk of SSI in a single-centre cohort of patients with hand trauma, with an analysis of the impact of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. METHODS: Retrospective data collection of consecutive patients who underwent surgery for hand and wrist trauma in a single plastic surgery centre over two, three-month periods. Demographic, injury and operative details, alongside prophylactic antibiotic use, were recorded. Burn injuries and wounds infected at presentation were excluded. Presence of SSI at 30 days (90 days if a surgical implant was used) was assessed. RESULTS: Overall, 556 patients – ‘Pre-COVID-19’ (n = 310) and ‘During COVID-19’ (n = 246) – were included. Risk of SSI was 3.6% in the aggregated cohort. Female patients were more likely to develop an SSI, even when adjusted for their greater prevalence of bite aetiologies (adj OR 2.5; 95% CI, 1.00–6.37 and p < 0.05). The absolute risk of SSI in the ‘Pre-COVID-19’ group was 2.3% and 5.3% in the ‘During COVID-19’ group. The relative risk of developing an SSI in the ‘During COVID-19’ group was 2.34 (95% CI, 0.95–5.78 and p = 0.06). Baseline characteristics were equivalent between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The risk of SSI in hand trauma is the same as the nationally estimated risk for all surgeries; 3–5%. Changes in presentation and practice associated with the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic did not appear to alter the risk of SSI in patients undergoing surgery for hand trauma.