Costs of surgical site infections that appear after hospital discharge

Nicholas Graves; Kate Halton; Merrilyn Curtis; Shane Doidge; David Lairson; Marylou McLaws; Michael Whitby

doi:10.3201/eid1205.051321

Costs of surgical site infections that appear after hospital discharge

Emerg Infect Dis. 2006 May;12(5):831-4. doi: 10.3201/eid1205.051321.

Authors

Nicholas Graves¹, Kate Halton, Merrilyn Curtis, Shane Doidge, David Lairson, Marylou McLaws, Michael Whitby

Affiliation

¹ The Centre for Healthcare Related Infection Surveillance and Prevention, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. [email protected]

Abstract

Data were collected from surgical patients in the hospital and on 4 occasions postdischarge. The incidence of postdischarge surgical site infection was 8.46%. Strong evidence showed that these infections caused minor additional costs, which contradicts existing literature. We discuss why previous studies might have overstated costs.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Australia
Female
Health Care Costs*
Humans
Incidence
Income
Infection Control / economics
Infection Control / methods
Length of Stay
Male
Middle Aged
Patient Discharge
Postoperative Care
Risk Factors
Surgical Wound Infection / economics*
Surgical Wound Infection / epidemiology*