The Association Between Duration of Antibiotics and Infectious Complications Following Radical Cystectomy: Analysis of the 2019-2021 NSQIP Database

OBJECTIVES To identify the impact of the duration of peri-operative antibiotics on infectious complications following radical cystectomy. METHODS The National Surgical Quality Improvement Project (NSQIP) targeted database was queried for patients undergoing radical cystectomy from 2019 to 2021. Baseline patient characteristics were collected. Antibiotic duration was classified as < 24 hours (short), 24-72 hours (intermediate) or > 72 hours (long). Infectious complication data were collected including surgical site infection (SSI), urinary tract infection (UTI), organ space infection, pneumonia, sepsis, and clostridium difficile infection up to 30 days after surgery. Univariate and multivariable analyses were performed to compare duration of antibiotic therapy to infectious outcomes. RESULTS Of the 4363 patients who underwent radical cystectomy, 3250 (74%), 827 (19%) and 286 (6.6%) received short, intermediate, and long duration of peri-operative antibiotics, respectively. Infectious complication occurred in 954 (22%) patients, including 227 (5.2%) SSI, 280 (6.4%) UTI, 268(6.1%) organ space infection, 87 (2%) pneumonia, and 378 (8.7%) sepsis. Clostridium difficile infection occurred in 89 (2%) patients. On multivariable analysis, there was no significant difference in overall infectious complication rates with long-duration antibiotics. However, intermediate duration of antibiotics in open surgery was associated with a decreased risk of SSI (OR 0.58; 95%CI 0.37-0.91) compared to those treated with short-term antibiotics. CONCLUSION Despite guideline recommendations, 26% of patients in this database received > 24 hours of peri-operative antibiotics without decreased risk of overall infectious complication. An intermediate course of antibiotics decreased risk of SSI in open surgery compared to the guideline recommend < 24-hour course. Greater education regarding antibiotic stewardship and further studies investigating infectious complications are warranted.