Length of preoperative hospital stay is the dominating risk factor for surgical site infection in neurosurgery: A cohort data-driven analysis.

Background: The number of days of preoperative hospital stay (PHS) is a modifiable variable that has shown contradictory surgical site infection (SSI) risk factor results in neurosurgery. We sought to pinpoint the day of PHS length related with a marked increase of risk of SSI.

Methods: From a tertiary teaching hospital, January 2015-December 2017, prospectively collected nonpercutaneous neurosurgery procedures with standard antibiotic prophylaxis and 1-year follow-up were evaluated.