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Perioperative Infection in the Patient with Rheumatic Disease

  • SURGERY AND PERIOPERATIVE CARE (CR MACKENZIE AND SM GOODMAN, SECTION EDITORS)
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Abstract

The risk of infection accompanies the benefits of surgery. Immunomodulatory chronic illnesses may increase the risk of surgical infections. Surgical patients with rheumatologic illness need close preoperative assessment regarding their infection risks (fixed and modifiable), which vary on the basis of the proposed procedure, specific rheumatologic illness, and underlying comorbidities. Modification of the medication regimens in the preoperative period may decrease risk and enhance healing. Intraoperative antisepsis and antibiotic prophylaxis remain critical in this patient population. Postoperative fevers within 3 days of surgery are usually noninfectious but require vigilance and attention. The principles of surgical infection reduction are not different in the rheumatologic and general patient populations, but best practice depends on expertise in caring for patients with these illnesses.

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Conflict of Interest

Andy O. Miller and Barry D. Brause declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Hospital for Special Surgery, Affiliated with The New York Presbyterian Hospital and Weill Cornell Medical College, 535 East 70th Street, New York, NY, 10021, USA

    Andy O. Miller & Barry D. Brause

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  1. Andy O. Miller
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Correspondence to Andy O. Miller.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Surgery and Perioperative Care

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Miller, A.O., Brause, B.D. Perioperative Infection in the Patient with Rheumatic Disease. Curr Rheumatol Rep 15, 379 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11926-013-0379-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11926-013-0379-2

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