Surgeon choice in the use of postdischarge antibiotics for prophylaxis following mastectomy with and without breast reconstruction

Multiple guidelines recommend discontinuation of prophylactic antibiotics <24 hours after surgery. In a multicenter, retrospective cohort of 2,954 mastectomy patients +/- immediate breast reconstruction, we found that utilization of prophylactic postdischarge antibiotics varied dramatically at the surgeon level among general surgeons and was virtually universal among plastic surgeons.

Automated summary

The study found that there was significant variation in the use of post-discharge prophylactic antibiotics among general surgeons, while plastic surgeons almost universally utilized them.