Infection prevention and control in the operating theatre: reducing the risk of surgical site infections (SSIs).

Continuing advances in surgical techniques, asepsis, operating theatre protocols and ventilation systems that ensure an uninterrupted supply of clean air, should allow all patients to undergo both invasive and minimally-invasive procedures with reduced risk. Patients having surgery in the United Kingdom are probably less vulnerable to surgical site infections (SSIs) than ever before--despite persisting concerns about meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and increasing antibiotic resistance in other organisms such as vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE).