[Empiric antibiotic therapy in the treatment of postoperative abdominal abscesses. Clinical and microbiological data].

Abdominal abscesses arising postoperatively constitute a serious problem, particularly in the field of oncological surgery. The aim of our study was to interpret clinical and microbiological data relating to a population of oncological patients, undergoing ultrasound-guided drainage for postoperative abdominal abscesses, so as to be able to better plan empiric antibiotic therapy. We therefore retrospectively analysed the data of 24 patients operated on for neoplastic pathologies and treated with ultrasound-guided percutaneous drainage for abdominal abscesses during the postoperative period. Microbiological and clinical data showed that abscesses located in the lower abdominal regions almost always present a polymicrobial growth, though abscesses in the upper regions are more frequent. Moreover, the antibiotic assay results prompted us to consider the use of beta-lactamines, quinolones and glycopeptides more favourably, in view of their greater efficacy against the microbes tested. Thus, the planning of empiric antibiotic therapy should be based above all on the anatomical-topographic location of the abdominal abscess and on the type of operation performed, with thorough assessment of the use of the above-mentioned antibiotics.