Global Guidelines for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infection. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2018. Web Appendix 27, Summary of a systematic review on antimicrobial prophylaxis in the presence of a drain and wound drain removal.
In conclusion, the available evidence can be summarized as follows:
Prolonged antibiotic prophylaxis in the presence of a wound drain vs. perioperative prophylaxis alone (PICO question 1, comparison 1)
Overall, a low quality of evidence shows that prolonged antibiotic prophylaxis in the presence of a wound drain has neither benefit nor harm in reducing the SSI rate when compared to perioperative prophylaxis alone (single dose before incision and possible intraoperative additional dose/s according to the duration of the operation).
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