The walk-in anergic patient. How best to assess the risk of sepsis following elective surgery.

This prospective study evaluated host resistance in a surgical population who walked into the hospital for elective surgery. Patients were stratified into Hospital Reactive (HR, n = 19) if they reacted to two or more of five recall skin test antigens and Walk-in Anergic (WA, n = 26) if they did not react to the antigens. The WA patients were slightly older (74.4 +/- 1.8 years, +/- SEM versus 66.7 +/- 2.7 p less than 0.05). Diagnosis in the HR and WA group were: tumors 13/19 versus 21/26, diverticulitis 3/19 versus 0/19, and miscellaneous 3/19 versus 5/26. Twenty-five laboratory normal controls (LN) were also studied. There were no significant differences in the following parameters between the HR and WA groups: stage of disease; hemoglobin; circulating leukocyte count; polymorphonuclear cell counts; total lymphocyte counts (both groups lower than LN, p less than 0.05), monocyte counts (both higher than LN, p less than 0.05); per cent E-rosettes and lymphocyte blastogenesis to mitogens (phytohemagglutinin, concanavalin-A) and antigens (purified protein derivative and tetanus); phagocytosis of preopsonised Staphylococcus aureus 502A, at 5, 10, and 20 minutes; alpha, beta, and gamma globulins; C3, and total hemolytic complement (CH50) levels; C-reactive protein; and ANA and DNA levels. The HR group demonstrated an increase in the rate of killing of Staphylococcus 502A at 10, 20, 40, and 80 minutes compared to the LN group but the WA group did not show this augmentation (p less than 0.001). The serum albumins were: LN = 4.46, HR = 3.98, WA = 3.43 g/dl (p less than 0.05). Degree and duration of surgery was the same in the HR and WA groups. There were no major sepsis episodes (bacteremia or proven intracavitary abscess) in the HR patients versus 25% in the WA patients (p less than 0.05). There was one death (6%, pulmonary embolus) in the HR group and 8 (40%) in the WA group (p less than 0.05). Antibiotic prophylaxis was equal but the WA patients received therapeutic antibiotics more frequently (65% versus 11% p less than 0.05). Of all the host immunocompetence tests measured in this study, the delayed type hypersensitivity skin test response and the serum albumin were variables abnormal between the survivors and those who died.