1999 Volume 13 Issue 1 Pages 22-26
The aim of this study was to determine whether a 2-day antibiotic prophylaxis regimen with a second-generation cephalosporin was effective in pulmonary operations for malignancies. We enrolled 61 consecutive patients who underwent elective thoracic surgery for lung cancer (n = 55) or metastatic lung tumors (n= 6). All the patients were given flomoxef (1.0 gm intravenously) at the time of anesthetic induction. Patients in group 1 (n= 31) were given flomoxef intravenously every 8 hours for a total of 8 times for 3 days immediately after ICU arrival. Patients in group 2 (n=30) were given flomoxef intravenously every 8 hours for a total of 5 times for 2 days immediately after ICU arrival. Thirteen of 31 patients received 3-day antibiotic prophylaxis in group 1 and 29 of 30 patients received 2-day antibiotic prophylaxis in group 2. Antibiotics were altered in 1 patient in each group and the duration of antibiotic administration became longer than the planned duration in the same patients. No significant difference was seen in duration of fever more than 38°C after surgery between the two groups. Wound infection was seen in 1 patient in each group. Empyema, death within 30 days after operation, and hospital death were not seen in either group. On day 7 and day 14 after operation, white blood cell counts and plasma CRP levels showed no significant differences between the two groups. These results suggest that 2-day antibiotic prophylaxis with a second-generation cephalosporin is of benefit for wound and other infections in pulmonary operations for malignancies.
