Introduction: Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the common problems following caesarean section . Antimicrobial prophylaxis used to reduce the microbial burden of intraoperative contamination to a level that can not overwhelm host defenses. Amoxycillin-clavulanic acid is a broad spectrum antibiotic that is active against most of the organisms implicated in post-caesarean infections. Objectives: The objective of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of 3 doses of amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (study group) versus a 7 days combination of amoxicillin-clavulanic acid and metronidazole (control group) as prophylactic antibiotics following caesarean section. Methods: A randomized controlled trial conducted for a year from July 2019- June 2020 at Midnapore Medical College,India. Patients were randomly assigned in : Group A: Those who received 3 doses of intravenous Amoxycillin-clavulanic acid 1.2 gm 12 hours apart with first dose given 30- 60 minutes before incision. Group B: Those who received intravenous Amoxycillin-clavulanic acid 1.2 gm twice daily for 7 days along with 3 doses of intravenous metronidale 8 hours apart. Results: The distribution of mean age, mean weight , mean gestational age and parity were statistically not significant, hence placement of groups was homogenous in nature. E.Coli was the commonest microorganism responsible for SSI in both arms. Mean hospital bed occupancy and the mean cost of antibiotics was much less in Group A and is statistically significant (p<0.05). Conclusions: The current study has demonstrated that short term prophylaxis is equally effective as with long term with the added benefit of reduced rate of acquiring nosocomial infections.

Introduction: Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the common problems following caesarean section . Antimicrobial prophylaxis used to reduce the microbial burden of intraoperative contamination to a level that can not overwhelm host defenses. Amoxycillin-clavulanic acid is a broad spectrum antibiotic that is active against most of the organisms implicated in post-caesarean infections. Objectives: The objective of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of 3 doses of amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (study group) versus a 7 days combination of amoxicillin-clavulanic acid and metronidazole (control group) as prophylactic antibiotics following caesarean section. Methods: A randomized controlled trial conducted for a year from July 2019- June 2020 at Midnapore Medical College,India. Patients were randomly assigned in : Group A: Those who received 3 doses of intravenous Amoxycillin-clavulanic acid 1.2 gm 12 hours apart with first dose given 30- 60 minutes before incision. Group B: Those who received intravenous Amoxycillin-clavulanic acid 1.2 gm twice daily for 7 days along with 3 doses of intravenous metronidale 8 hours apart. Results: The distribution of mean age, mean weight , mean gestational age and parity were statistically not significant, hence placement of groups was homogenous in nature. E.Coli was the commonest microorganism responsible for SSI in both arms. Mean hospital bed occupancy and the mean cost of antibiotics was much less in Group A and is statistically significant (p<0.05). Conclusions: The current study has demonstrated that short term prophylaxis is equally effective as with long term with the added benefit of reduced rate of acquiring nosocomial infections.