Question

All of the following are risk factors for postoperative infection after hysterectomy except:

• A. Surgery for malignancy
• B. Age > 50 yrs
• C. Urinary catheterization > 7 days
• D. Use of blood transfusion

Hint:

Malignancy surgery, prolonged catheter use, and transfusion raise infection risk; a simple age over 50 cutoff does not.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Infection after hysterectomy can show up as a wound infection, pelvic abscess, or urinary tract infection. Certain patient and surgery factors raise this risk. Let's check each option.

1. Surgery for malignancy: cancer surgery tends to be longer and more extensive, with more tissue handling and sometimes lymph node removal, all of which increase infection risk. This is a real risk factor.
2. Age > 50 yrs: age by itself, using a simple cutoff of 50 years, is not part of the standard, specific list of risk factors quoted for postoperative infection after hysterectomy. Other factors like obesity, diabetes, and operative time matter far more than crossing this particular age line.
3. Urinary catheterization > 7 days: the longer a catheter stays in, the higher the chance bacteria travel up into the bladder, so prolonged catheterization is a clear and well documented risk factor.
4. Use of blood transfusion: needing a transfusion often means more blood loss and a longer, harder operation, and transfusion itself can dampen immune response a little, so this raises infection risk too.

Let's summarize:

• Real risk factors here: malignancy surgery, catheter left in more than 7 days, blood transfusion.
• A flat age cutoff of 50 years is not one of the specific established risk factors.

So the exception is age greater than 50 years.