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Childbirth is one of life’s great miracles. Today, caesarean section is performed as an emergency life-saving operation or as a planned procedure. Surgical site infection (SSI) is a common postoperative complication for a woman undergoing caesarean section. By understanding that the choice of dressing can make a difference, we have come a long way.
Sorbact® can be a part of preventing and managing birth-related wounds and post-caesarean section infection. Learn more about how the risk of SSI can be reduced in our video and afterwards calculate your potential savings with Sorbact®.
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Sorbact® bacteria and fungi binding dressings prevent and treat wound infections by lowering the bioburden.1,2 Bacteria irreversibly bind and anchor to the unique Sorbact® surface. Safe and effective removal of bacteria reduces the bioburden in wounds which facilitates the healing process. With the Sorbact® mode of action, development of bacterial or fungal resistance is not expected.
Since there are no active agents released into the wound3, Sorbact® dressings can be used right from the start, in all patients, in the short-term or for prolonged treatment of already infected wounds.
Read more about the Sorbact® solution
Based on a randomized controlled study we have set up a calculator for you to estimate the value of preventing SSI in caesarean section. Read more about this study
Disclaimer: This value calculator is for illustrative purposes only. Any savings will vary depending on the hospital’s practices, internal routines and procedures, type of patients and the quality of efforts made locally.
Start calculatortotal number of SSIs
total cost
Number of caesarean sections. A period is often a year for a hospital, region or country.
The incidence rate (the % of new SSIs within a time period) following a caesarean section vary between 3%-15%.1
1.Saeed KBM, Greene RA, et al. 2017. Incidence of surgical site infection following caesarean section: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol. BMJ Open. 7:e013037. 
Average cost for treating an SSI is approximately 4400€ at 2017 prices.1,2 The main cost driver is extra length of stay in hospital. Approximate additional costs attributable to SSI vary between 900€-7300€ depending on the type of surgery and the severity of the infection.3
Total cost of SSIs = number of SSIs x average cost of an SSI
1.Jenks PJ, Laurent M, et al. 2014. Clinical and economic burden of surgical site infection (SSI) and predicted financial consequences of elimination of SSI from an English hospital. J Hosp Infect. 86(1):24-33.
2.Stanirowski PJ, Davies H, et al. 2019. Cost-effectiveness of a bacterial-binding dressing to prevent surgical site infection following caesarean section. J Wound Care. 28(4):222-228.
3.Leaper DJ, Van Goor H, et al. 2004. Surgical site infection – a European perspective of incidence and economic burden. Int Wound J. 1(4):247-273.
Leukomed® is a registered trademark of BSN Medical GmbH
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Valuable information has been produced by EWMA. This paper provides the latest techniques for managing and preventing birth-related wounds and post-caesarean section infection. Sorbact® is the only dressing in the document that is indicated for preventing as well as treating already-infected surgical wounds.
Read moreProven to prevent and treat wound infection in more than 40 clinical studies and in publications including over 7,000 patients, Sorbact® has more than 30 years of successful use in clinical practice. Today Sorbact® is helping patients in over 65 countries around the world and we are continuing this important work by collecting clinical data.
A randomized controlled study among 543 patients undergoing elective or emergency caesarean section, comparing Sorbact® Surgical Dressing to standard surgical dressing (1.8 % vs. 5.2 %) p=0.04.
Stanirowski PJ, Bizoń M, et al. 2016. Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluating Dialkylcarbamoyl Chloride Impregnated Dressings for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infections in Adult Women Undergoing Cesarean Section. Surg Infect (Larchmt). 17(4):427-435. doi.org/10.1089/sur.2015.223
Read summary of study
A randomized controlled pilot study on 142 women undergoing caesarean sections. Requirement of systemic antibiotic: 7 % (Control) vs. 0 % (Sorbact®) p=0.03. Rate of SSI: 9.8 % (Control) vs. 2.8 % (Sorbact®) p=0.08.
Stanirowski PJ, Kociszewska A, et al. 2016. Dialkylcarbamoyl chloride-impregnated dressing for the prevention of surgical site infection in women undergoing cesarean section: a pilot study. Arch Med Sci. 12(5):1036–1042. doi.org/10.5114/aoms.2015.47654
Read summary of study
Listen to the presentation by Paweł Stanirowski MD PhD, from the Congress of the European Society of Gynecology in Vienna 2019. He presented the results from his studies where Sorbact® was used to prevent SSI after caesarean section.
543 women were recruited to the study and SSI rates were 1.8% and 5.2% for DACC™ surgical dressings and standard of care respectively. The DACC™ group had six fewer outpatient visits and 33 fewer days in the hospital. UK unit costs were applied and produced a cost saving of £119 (57.6%) per patient with DACC™ surgical dressings.
Stanirowski PJ, Davies H, et al. 2019. Cost-effectiveness of a bacterial-binding dressing to prevent surgical site infection following caesarean section. J Wound Care. 28(4):222-228.
Leukomed® Sorbact® was evaluated in a new wound management pathway in women with raised body mass index undergoing caesarean section. The results showed no change in SSIs compared to NPWT but there was potential cost savings.
Clarke L and Livesey A. 2021. Dressing evaluation and audit for women with raised BMI undergoing caesarean section. J Community Nurs. 35(2):49-53.
Leukomed® is a registered trademark of BSN Medical GmbH
A quality improvement program was implemented by ABUHB maternity service to reduce SSIs after caesarean section. This was done by a multifactor approach including changes in pre-operative care, new drapes, implementation of Sorbact® Surgical Dressing and 4-5 days of undisturbed healing instead of 24 hours. This holistic approach to quality improvement reduced the SSI rate and showed cost savings for the NHS.
Taylor L, Mills E, et al. 2020. Reducing SSI rates for women birthing by caesarean section. J Community Nurs. 34(3):50-53.
A systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy of wound dressings in the prevention of SSI after caesarean section. Six citations were included in the meta-analysis with two RCTs that assessed DACC™-coated wound dressings. Subgroup meta-analysis confirmed significant benefits of DACC™-coated dressings in SSI prevention.
Wijetunge S, Hill R, et al. 2021. Advanced dressings for the prevention of surgical site infection in women post-caesarean section: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 267:226-233.
