Boodt 1990.

Methods	Design: randomised double‐blinded No. eligible: not stated No. randomised: 406 No. analysed: 406 (reported in table of results) Drop‐outs/withdrawals: states 7 participants not evaluable (5 underwent vaginal hysterectomy with repair, 2 underwent surgery for urinary incontinence) Years of recruitment: not stated Setting: single centre, Dutch teaching hospital
Participants	Inclusion criteria: patients hospitalised for an abdominal or vaginal hysterectomy or a vaginal hysterectomy with vaginal repair, who were informed about the objective of trial in writing before the operation and gave permission to be included Exclusion criteria: emergency operation, known sensitivity to cephalosporins, preexisting infection or antibiotic therapy in the 48 hours preceding surgery Age: 41 to 59 years Type of hysterectomy: abdominal or vaginal (some vaginal with associated procedures).
Interventions	Treatment: 1500 mg cefuroxime (second‐generation cephalosporin) plus 500 mg metronidazole (antiprotozoal) Control: placebo Route: IV Single/multiple doses: single Timing of doses: 10‐minute infusion during induction of anaesthesia
Outcomes	Urinary tract infection Pelvic infection Postoperative fever Need for therapeutic antibiotics Length of hospital stay Follow up: 6 weeks
Funding	Not stated
Notes
Risk of bias
Bias	Authors' judgement	Support for judgement
Random sequence generation (selection bias)	Unclear risk	Stated as randomised but method not described
Allocation concealment (selection bias)	Unclear risk	Not described
Blinding (performance bias and detection bias) All outcomes	Low risk	"In view of the double blind...both the active and the placebo infusions were coloured yellow..."
Incomplete outcome data (attrition bias) All outcomes	Unclear risk	Insufficient information on withdrawals and reasons for withdrawals
Selective reporting (reporting bias)	Unclear risk	Adverse effects not systematically reported
Other bias	Low risk	Baseline demographic characteristics similar between treatment groups