Prevention of surgical site infection: A unified effort across the drape divide

Although considerable progress has been made with the introduction of antiseptic technique and antibiotic prophylaxis, surgical site infection remains a common and dreadful complication after surgery with far reaching consequences for individual patients and the health care system at large. Only relatively modest improvements have been made since, and with each step forward incremental improvements become smaller. At the same time, the use of antibiotic prophylaxis comes at the expense of duration and dose dependent effects on antimicrobial resistance and other adverse effects. The aim of this thesis is to investigate measures that can help prevent surgical site infection in the context of small incremental improvements and the threat of antimicrobial resistance.