Prophylactic use of cefuroxime in biliary tract surgery: Randomized controlled trial of single versus multiple dose in high-risk patients

Abstract

To assess the efficacy of a single-dose short-acting antibiotic in the prevention of septic complications after biliary surgery, a randomized controlled double-blind multicentre trial was conducted. One dose of cefuroxime before operation (1.5 g intravenously) was compared with a three-dose regimen of the drug as control (1.5 g before and two doses of 0.75 g after operation). The study group comprised 1004 patients with risk factors for infection, who were followed for 4–6 weeks after surgery. The characteristics of both treatment groups were comparable. No significant difference was found between the one- and three-dose antibiotic regimens in preventing postoperative wound infection: 6.6 versus 6.2 per cent for minor wound infection (P = 0.78) and 4.6 versus 3.8 per cent for minor wound infection (P = 0.52). The estimated difference in major wound infection rate between the two groups was 0.8 per cent (95 per cent confidence interval −1.7 to 3.3 per cent).