Surgical site infections (SSIs) initiated during invasive procedures can require additional and/or extended treatment. Despite the best efforts of healthcare facilities to maintain safe surgical environments, surgical site infections result in up to $10 billion in treatment costs every year in the U.S. alone.

• 780,000 out of 30 million surgical procedures performed annually in the U.S. result in SSI.¹
• In the United Kingdom, the estimated direct costs for a patient who has developed a surgical site infection are between €2,265 and €2,518.²
• According to a study in the Netherlands, SSIs result in 5.8 to 17 extra days of hospitalization.³
• In France, approximately 11% of surgical patients acquire a surgical site infection.⁴

Some common causes of SSI are:

• Complications from surgical hypothermia
• Contamination of the incision area by skin flora
• Bacterial cross–contamination
• Surgical instrument contamination

_{1 Cook, R. “Hospitals learn simple, cheap steps can prevent infections,” San Francisco Chronicle, May 18, 2004; F1.
2 Coello R, Glenister H, Fereres J, Bartlett C, Leigh D, Sedgwick J, et al. The cost of infection in surgical patients: a case–control study. J Hosp Infect 1993; 24(4):239–50., and Plowman R, Graves N, Griffin MA, Roberts JA, Swan AV, Cookson, B, et al. The rate and cost of hospital–acquired infections occurring in patients admitted to selected specialties of a district general hospital in England and the national burden imposed. J Hosp Infect 2001; 47(3):198–209.
3 Geubbels EL, Mintjes–de Groot AJ, Van den Berg JM, de Boer AS. An operating surveillance system of surgical site infections in the Netherlands: results of the PREZIES national surveillance network. Preventie van Ziekenhuisinfecties door Surveillance. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2000; 21 (5): 107.
4 Source: Prevalence of nosocomial infections in France; results of the nationwide survey in 1996. Journal of Hospital Infection. 2000; 46:186–193}