Surgical Site Infection: Methods of Prevention & Tools for Predicting Risk - Case Study

Medical History
A 55-year-old white male has degenerative arthritis of the knees. 10 months ago, the patient underwent total knee replacement on the left knee without complication. The surgical incisions had closed without signs of surgical site infection. At the time, he made a good recovery. He is fully functional and fully independent. Patient is a chain smoker with a wife and two children. He works a desk job at the local newspaper company and has relatively moderate stress levels.

Prior to current presentation, the patient underwent arthroscopy on the right knee as an outpatient. Patient had suffered from non-inflammatory degenerative arthritis for years, and his physician noticed frayed and irregular cartilage in his knees about two months before his right knee arthroscopy as noted from an MRI. Several years ago, the patient had also suffered an ACL and meniscus tear as a result of playing pick-up basketball at the gym. The torn ligament and cartilage were repaired shortly after injury with no significant problems following the reconstructive surgery. A screening test via nasal swab for methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) performed at that time was negative.