Factors associated with risk of surgical wound infections.

Surgical wound infections are the most common hospital-acquired infections among patients who undergo inpatient surgery. Risk of infection is a function of both patient susceptibility and exposure. The authors studied all discharges in Pennsylvania from October 1, 2004, through September 30, 2005, in which a circulatory (n= 65 940), neurological (n= 6706), or orthopedic (n = 107 825) procedure was performed using data from the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council.