Early Detection of Surgical Wound Infections Using Sensor Technology

Plain-language summary

Infections that are caused by surgical incision are commonly known as surgical site infections (SSI). A surgical wound infection can develop at any time after surgery until the wound has healed (usually two to three weeks after the operation). Very occasionally, an infection can occur several months after an operation. About 5 in 100 patients develop SSI after hospital discharge. During the patient's stay in hospital, nurses routinely change their wound dressings to check for any signs of infection. However, since infections develop after patients leave hospital it is difficult for staff to monitor signs in patients' homes. In some hospitals, staff may contact patients in their homes to check on their wounds but most of the time it is not possible. The recent improvement in surgical operations means that more patients are discharged from hospital earlier than they would have been in the past even before their wounds are healed. Increasingly, patients develop SSI after leaving hospital particularly among the more vulnerable high risk groups. Signs of SSI may not always be recognised by the patient and delays in seeking care leads to serious infection-related complications. The investigators wish to fit a device onto the patients' personal mobile phone camera lens. This will allow patients to take pictures of their wound routinely at home submit images automatically to a computer at the hospital for analysis. Staff at the hospital will alert the patient if the results strongly that indicate signs of infection and an appropriate treatment plan put into place for you. This type of technology has never been used in this application before so, the investigators plan in this study to find out whether it can accurately detect early signs of wound infections and whether it is easy to use, acceptable to the patient and their health care professionals. A total of 40 patients will be invited to take part in the study over a period of 12 months.

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