Wash but don’t shave before surgery, WHO warns patients

Women undergoing surgery have been warned against shaving the related area before their operation because it raises the risk of infection.

The World Health Organisation has instead recommended a shower to ensure the area is as clean as possible.

They advise the patients to leave the surgery areas to doctors who can use sterilised scissors.

According to the world health agency, shaving at home could damage the skin around the area, raising the risk of infection, while a blade that has not been sterilised also risks exposing the skin near the surgery site to harmful bacteria.

Surgical site infections are a leading cause of complications among hospital patients, accounting for nearly one out of five health care-associated infections and thousands of deaths annually, according to WHO.

In low and middle-income countries, 11 per cent of patients who undergo surgery are infected in the process.

In Africa, up to 20 per cent of women who have a Caesarean section contract a wound infection, compromising their own health and their ability to care for their babies.

Dr Marie-Paule Kieny, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Health Systems and Innovation, said serious infections of surgical wounds can extend hospital stays, cause long-term disability or even life-threatening conditions as well as raising costs for the surgery.

“You would think it would make things easier for the surgical team because they can access the area more easily, but actually it is important that the surgical team preparing the patient for surgery tell patients they must not do this —the team will do it for you,” he said.

The advice is part of a new set of standards aimed at preventing and treating surgical site infections, which account for 16 per cent of all infections contracted while receiving care.

The guidelines also ensures that surgical teams clean their hands, get guidance on when to use antibiotics to prevent infections, what disinfectants to use before cut, and which joints to use.

The study titled The Global Guidelines for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infection is designed to address the increasing burden of healthcare-associated infections on both patients and healthcare systems globally.

“The new guidelines aim at saving lives, cutting costs and arresting spread of superbugs (a strain of bacteria that has become resistant to antibiotic drugs),” said Dr Kieny.

“Preventing surgical infections has never been more important but it is complex and requires a range of preventive measures. These guidelines are an invaluable tool for protecting patients,,” he said.

“Many of us need surgery, but none of us wants to pick up an infection on the operating table,” said Dr Ed Kelley, Director of WHO’s Department of Service Delivery and Safety.

“By applying these new guidelines surgical teams can reduce harm, improve quality of life, and do their bit to stop the spread of antibiotic resistance. We also recommend that patients preparing for surgery ask their surgeon whether they are following WHO’s advice,” he said.

The new WHO guidelines are valid for any country and suitable to local adaptations. Surgical site infections are caused by bacteria that get in through openings made during surgery.

They threaten the lives of millions of patients each year and contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance.

Dr Aggrey Akula, an obstetric gynaecologist in Kisumu, said health care-associated infections (HAI) are acquired by patients while receiving care and represent the most frequent adverse event affecting patient safety worldwide.

“Surgical site infection (SSI) is the most surveyed and frequent type of health care-associated infections in low- and middle-income countries and affects up to one third of patients who have undergone a surgical procedure,” said Dr Akula.

He said it was appropriate for the patients, more so women who are going to deliver, not to shave and leave it for doctors who would do it with sterilised materials.