Effects of comprehensive nursing care on infection prevention and recovery outcomes in women undergoing gynecological surgery

Perioperative infections remain a major concern in gynecological surgery, often leading to prolonged hospitalization, increased costs, and adverse outcomes. Comprehensive nursing care has been proposed as a holistic approach to reduce complications and improve recovery, but its effectiveness in gynecological procedures has not been fully established. This study evaluates the impact of comprehensive perioperative nursing care on infection prevention, inflammatory responses, and recovery outcomes among women undergoing gynecological surgery. This study was designed as a retrospective, propensity score-matched cohort study. A total of 63 patients who underwent elective gynecological surgery at our institution between February 2021 and February 2024 were included. Patients were grouped according to whether they received comprehensive nursing care or conventional nursing. Propensity score matching was applied to balance baseline characteristics, yielding 2 comparable cohorts of 24 patients each. The comprehensive care model comprised individualized preoperative assessment, intraoperative safety management, postoperative rehabilitation, and structured post-discharge follow-up. Outcomes evaluated included infection incidence, inflammatory markers (C-reactive protein, white blood cell count, and procalcitonin), and antibiotic use. Patients receiving comprehensive nursing care had significantly lower overall infection rates compared with those receiving conventional care (8.3% vs 25.0%, P = .04). Surgical site infections (4.2% vs 16.7%, P = .03) and urinary tract infections (8.3% vs 20.8%, P = .02) were notably reduced. Postoperative inflammatory markers (C-reactive protein, white blood cell count, and procalcitonin) were consistently lower in the comprehensive group (all P < .05). Additionally, prophylactic antibiotic duration was shorter (median 3 vs 5 days, P = .01), and fewer patients required therapeutic antibiotics (12.5% vs 33.3%, P = .04). Comprehensive perioperative nursing care effectively reduces infection risk, attenuates postoperative inflammation, and optimizes antibiotic utilization in gynecological surgery patients. These findings support its adoption as a standard perioperative care model to improve clinical outcomes.