Oxygen as an antibiotic. A comparison of the effects of inspired oxygen concentration and antibiotic administration on in vivo bacterial clearance
D. R. Knighton, B. Halliday and T. K. Hunt
Since prophylactic antibiotics and changes in tissue partial pressure of
oxygen may affect bacterial clearance by different mechanisms, we tested
the effects of hypoxia, hyperoxia, and normoxia with and without antibiotic
administration on bacterial clearance. We found that improving tissue
oxygenation by administration of normobaric oxygen decreased infectious
necrosis as effectively as prophylactic antibiotic administration and that
improved tissue oxygenation and antibiotic administration had an additive
effect. We believe that a fraction of inspired oxygen of 45% should be
added to prophylactic antibiotics as standard perioperative and
postoperative care.
