What can you do as a patient to reduce Your risk of infection?

The risk of post-operative skin infections following a surgery was found to be approximately 2% according to the Scoliosis Research Society that presented at the 24th Annual Meeting of the North American Spine Society. Here are a few things that you can do to prevent superficial skin infection of your incision:

Wash bed sheets prior to surgery
Do not allow pets to sleep in bed with you
Shower with soap daily allowing soapy water to travel over the incision
Do not use nicotine
Make sure that anyone assisting you or yourself wash hands before dressing the incision
Do not use antibacterial creams
Do not shave the area prior to surgery
Call your surgeon if you develop a fever greater than 100.1 degrees F , develop drainage or increased redness surrounding incision

These are a few things you can do to reduce your risk. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact your healthcare provider or visit:
https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/007645.htm for further information.

Author

Shaylan Zanecki PA-C

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