Background: Despite improvements in antimicrobial therapy, surgical technique and postoperative care, wound infection is still a major concern in pediatric surgical practice particularly in developing countries like Bangladesh. Objective: This study was conducted to ascertain the relationship between the preoperative nutritional status and postoperative wound infection in children as malnutrition is very prevalent among them. It was also decided to estimate the rate of wound infection in children and to identify the indicator of malnutrition that best predicts wound infection. Methods: This prospective study was carried out in the Department of Pediatric Surgery, BSMMU, Dhaka during the period of January 2009 to September 2010 and included consecutive 100 children undergoing routine surgery. Nutritional status was assessed by measuring BMI, serum albumin, haemoglobin and total lymphocyte count and thus children were categorized preoperatively. The children were assessed during the first 30 postoperative days for the evidence of wound infection that were confirmed by culture and sensitivity. Results: We found most of the wound infections among the malnourished children with low BMI and low serum albumin. Conclusion: Preoperative good nutritional status is associated with less postoperative wound infection and BMI and serum albumin are good indicators but total lymphocyte count and haemoglobin are not good indicators of protein calorie malnutrition and serum albumin is the best predictor of wound infection. Journal of Surgical Sciences (2019) Vol. 23(2): 48-53

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