Association of β-Lactam Allergy Documentation and Prophylactic Antibiotic Use in Surgery: A National Cross-Sectional Study of Hospitalized Patients

Alternative antibiotics for surgical prophylaxis are associated with increased adverse events and surgical site infection compared to cefazolin. In a sample of perioperative inpatients from 100 hospitals in the United States, cefazolin was 9-fold less likely to be used in patients with a documented beta-lactam allergy whereas clindamycin was 45-fold more likely.

Automated summary

The study found that using alternative antibiotics for surgical prophylaxis poses an increased risk of adverse events and surgical site infection compared to cefazolin. Additionally, patients with documented beta-lactam allergy were more likely to be prescribed clindamycin instead of cefazolin.