Re: Prophylactic antibiotics at csection

From: Steve & Eryl Raymond (eryl@intekom.co.za)
Fri Mar 26 13:23:34 2004


Our paediatricians tell us that they don't care one way or the other whether mother had antibiotics or not - they treat a baby with signs or symptoms of infection without reference to the obstetric antibiotics. As far as I can see they don't place much emphasis on swabs or cultures taken at delivery. Because of this all our sections get a gram of cefoxitin BEFORE the incision. Steve

DoctorJoe@aol.com wrote:

> In a message dated 3/25/04 8:39:46 PM, Glen.Elrod@ELMENDORF.af.mil writes:
>
> << The newest ACOG technical bulletin on prophylactic antibiotics in Ob/Gyn
>
> states that prophylactic antibiotics are acceptable for csections.
>
> According to this it is "most commonly given after cord clamp."
>
> Having just sat on a meeting of our infectious disease board reviewing
>
> postoperative infectinos and cs infections specifically, I could not come up
>
> with nor find a rational reason to wait until after cord clamp if the idea
>
> was to prevent surgical infection.
>
> For gyn surgery, most commonly these are given 30 minutes before the case.
>
> Can someone help with a reason for the difference? >>
>
> The original surgical research indicated the best results if antibiotics were
> given before incision. This is obviously the accepted way to do it, even
> today.
>
> In C-secions who are NOT already infected, it should be the same procedure.
> However, over the years the Pediatricians have bitched and complained that a
> baby with antibiotics on board at delivery MUST have a "full" course of
> antibiotics "just in case," since cultures will be "unreliable" due to interference by
> antibiotics. Therefore, giving someone a gram of cefazolin (or whatever)
> before a C-section often doomed a baby to a 10 day course of amp&gent or whatever
> the broad-spectrum coverage du jour was in the nursery.
>
> Soooooo, to get around the (less than scientifically reasonable) actions of
> the pediatricians, we started giving the antibiotics (prophylaxis, not
> treatment) AFTER the cord was clamped, to make sure that the baby didn't get any and
> the pediatricians wouldn't go overboard. That practice has persisted to this
> day.
>
> Interestingly, when a mother gets prophylactic AMPICILLIN (or penicillin) in
> labor for GBS prevention, the pediatricians don't put them on 10 days of
> broad-spectrum coverage. So go figure.
>
> Joe P.
>





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