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Volume 10, Number 11—November 2004
Research

Enhanced Identification of Postoperative Infections among Outpatients

Andrew L. Miner*†‡, Kenneth E. Sands*‡§, Deborah S. Yokoe*†‡, John Freedman#, Kristin Thompson†, James M. Livingston‡, and Richard Platt*†‡Comments to Author 
Author affiliations: *Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA; †Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Boston, Massachusetts, USA; ‡Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA; §Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA; #Tufts Health Plan, Watertown, Massachusetts, USA

Main Article

Table 1

Breast surgeries and cesarean sections identifiable from claims dataa

Characteristics Breast procedures Cesarean section
No. of procedures 1,943 4,859
Median patient age in y (interquartile range) 48 (39–55) 32 (28–35)
% with prescriptions within 30 days after surgery 62 61
% with prescriptions in the 6 months before surgery 66 23
Postoperative days w/ambulatory claimsb 6 (2–11) 1 (0–2)
Diagnoses on days w/ambulatory claimsb 3 (2–4) 1 (1–2)
SSI indicator categoriesc
Inpatient diagnosis (%) 30 (1.5) 63 (1.3)
Principally outpatient indicators (%)
Ambulatory setting diagnosis (excludes ED) 173 (8.9) 112 (2.3)
Antimicrobial drugs in ambulatory setting 279 (14) 277 (5.7)
Wound culture 20 (1.0) 124 (2.6)
Wound care 33 (1.7) 11 (0.2)
Emergency department diagnosis 25 (1.3) 25 (0.5)
Any SSI indicator (%) 426 (22) 474 (10)

aSSI, surgical site infection, ED, emergency department.
bPostoperative days 0–60 for breast surgeries, 0–30 for cesarean section.
cNumber of procedures (percent of total) with at least one SSI indicator of the listed type in the 60 days (breast procedures) or 30 days (cesarean sections) after surgery.

Main Article

Page created: January 04, 2013
Page updated: January 04, 2013
Page reviewed: January 04, 2013
The conclusions, findings, and opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors' affiliated institutions. Use of trade names is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by any of the groups named above.
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