Defining Mechanisms of Surgical Site Infection After Oral Cancer Surgery

August 3, 2026 updated by: Joseph Zenga, Medical College of Wisconsin
The study design is an observational cohort study of patients undergoing standard of care oral cavity reconstruction. An observational study is required to prospectively evaluate microbial and antibiotic mechanisms underlying surgical site infection after oral cavity reconstruction.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

This is a single institution study at the Medical College of Wisconsin, given the feasibility of projected sample size accrual as well as the clinical and translational expertise at this location for investigating surgical site infection after oral cavity reconstruction. Biospecimens collected will include oral, nasal, pharyngoesophageal, and skin microbial swabs, blood, and discard tissue samples obtained during standard of care oral cavity reconstruction surgery and an oral swab and nasal swab obtained post-operatively.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
40

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office
  • Phone Number: 8900 866-680-0505
  • Email: cccto@mcw.edu

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Wisconsin
      • Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, 53226
        • Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The projected sample size is 40 patients over 2 years. The cohort will be oral cancer patients undergoing standard of care oral cavity reconstruction, which includes a planned surgical connection from the oral cavity to the neck soft tissues which is repaired through free or pedicled flap reconstruction.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Provide signed and dated informed consent form. Subjects must have the capacity to consent for themselves.
  2. Willing to comply with all study procedures and be available for the duration of the study.
  3. Aged 21 years or older.
  4. Planned to undergo standard of care oral cavity reconstruction surgery with use of ampicillin/sulbactam as the prophylactic antibiotic agent administered.
  5. Oral cavity reconstruction surgery will be defined as any surgical procedure which includes a planned connection from the oral cavity to the neck soft tissues which is repaired with a free or regional tissue flap.
  6. History of oral or oropharyngeal cancer.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Allergy to ampicillin/sulbactam.
  2. Vulnerable populations including pregnant women and prisoners.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Subjects undergoing Oral Cavity Reconstruction
The cohort will be oral cancer patients undergoing standard of care oral cavity reconstruction.
Procedure: Oral Cavity Reconstruction
This procedure includes a planned surgical connection from the oral cavity to the neck soft tissues which is repaired through free or pedicled flap reconstruction.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Source of bacteria leading to a surgical site infection
Time Frame: Up to 30 days
This is the number of subjects with surgical site infections with bacteria that originates from the oral cavity. This will be determined by metagenomic mapping of bacterial strains causing surgical site infection back on to the metagenomic samples from their anatomic source (oral cavity, nasal cavity, pharyngoesophagus, donor site skin).
Up to 30 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Tissue antibiotic correlations
Time Frame: Up to 30 days
This is the number of subjects with tissue antibiotic concentrations that correlate with surgical site infection. This will be accomplished by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC-MS) to assess for antibiotic concentration in tissue and blood during surgery.
Up to 30 days
Plasma antibiotic correlations
Time Frame: Up to 30 days
This is the number of subjects with plasma antibiotic concentrations that correlate with surgical site infection. This will be accomplished by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC-MS) to assess for antibiotic concentration in tissue and blood during surgery.
Up to 30 days

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Medical College of Wisconsin

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Joseph Zenga, MD, Medical College of Wisconsin

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
April 29, 2025

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
July 24, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
July 24, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
November 7, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 7, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
November 12, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
August 5, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 3, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • PRO00052346
  • R21DE032844 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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