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Noisy operating theatres lead to more surgical infections

If you’ve got a chatty surgeon, or a noisy operating theatre, beware. New data published in the British Journal of Surgery shows that patients who undergo surgery in noisy environments are more likely to suffer surgical site infections (SSIs).

In a small study by Swiss researchers, researchers followed 35 surgical patients who underwent planned, major abdominal surgery for 30 days after surgery. Six patients (around 17%) developed SSIs. The only variable was a considerably higher level of noise in the operating theatre.

On average patients who developed infections were subjected to sound levels of around 43.5 decibels compared to 25 decibels for those who did not. The longer the surgery went on the higher the sound levels appeared to be. This could, say the researchers, be related to increased difficulty with the operation, but chatter about non-patient topics was also associated with a significantly higher noise level during surgery.

Post operative infections can lead to longer stays in hospital and more prescriptions for drugs such as antibiotics. The higher level of noise in the operating theatres, speculate the researchers, may be related to surgical difficulty, a stressful environment, impaired discipline or concentration on the part of the surgeon and staff.

The authors call for more study to better understand how each of these factors influences SSIs and other complications and to better understand the source of operating theatre noise influence on patient well-being.