diff --git a/litellm/proxy/prometheus_cleanup.py b/litellm/proxy/prometheus_cleanup.py
index 34c48de74fa..4dec57fa806 100644
--- a/litellm/proxy/prometheus_cleanup.py
+++ b/litellm/proxy/prometheus_cleanup.py
@@ -1,11 +1,8 @@
 """
 Prometheus multiprocess directory cleanup utilities.
 
-When running with multiple workers and PROMETHEUS_MULTIPROC_DIR set,
-each worker creates memory-mapped .db files (e.g., counter_1234.db).
-When workers die or restart, gauge_live* files for dead PIDs must be
-cleaned up via mark_process_dead(). Counter and histogram files are
-kept since they contain cumulative data needed for correct aggregation.
+mark_process_dead() only removes gauge_live* files — counter/histogram
+files are kept for correct aggregation and wiped in bulk on startup.
 """
 
 from __future__ import annotations
@@ -28,39 +25,18 @@ def _get_multiproc_dir() -> Optional[str]:
 
 
 def _is_pid_alive(pid: int) -> bool:
-    """
-    Check if a process with the given PID is alive.
-
-    Uses os.kill(pid, 0) which doesn't send a signal but checks existence.
-    - ProcessLookupError: process does not exist (dead)
-    - PermissionError: process exists but we can't signal it (alive, conservative)
-    - OSError: other error, treat as alive (conservative)
-    """
+    """Check if a process is alive using signal 0 (conservative: unknown = alive)."""
     try:
         os.kill(pid, 0)
         return True
     except ProcessLookupError:
         return False
-    except PermissionError:
-        # Process exists but we don't have permission to signal it
-        return True
-    except OSError:
-        # Conservative: treat unknown errors as alive
+    except (PermissionError, OSError):
         return True
 
 
 def _extract_pids_from_dir(directory: str) -> Set[int]:
-    """
-    Scan .db filenames in a directory and extract PIDs.
-
-    Prometheus client creates files like:
-    - counter_1234.db
-    - histogram_1234.db
-    - gauge_livesum_1234.db
-    - gauge_liveall_1234.db
-
-    Returns a set of integer PIDs found.
-    """
+    """Scan .db filenames in a directory and extract PIDs (e.g. counter_1234.db -> 1234)."""
     pids: Set[int] = set()
     try:
         for filename in os.listdir(directory):
@@ -75,15 +51,7 @@ def _extract_pids_from_dir(directory: str) -> Set[int]:
 
 
 def wipe_directory(directory: str) -> None:
-    """
-    Delete all .db files in the prometheus multiproc directory.
-
-    Called once in the master process before workers fork. Per the
-    prometheus_client docs: "This directory must be wiped between
-    process runs (before startup is recommended)."
-
-    Any .db files present at this point are stale from a previous run.
-    """
+    """Delete all .db files in the directory. Called once before workers fork."""
     files = glob.glob(os.path.join(directory, "*.db"))
     for filepath in files:
         try:
@@ -99,14 +67,7 @@ def wipe_directory(directory: str) -> None:
 
 
 def cleanup_own_pid_files() -> None:
-    """
-    Mark the current process as dead for prometheus multiproc cleanup.
-
-    Called during per-worker shutdown. Uses mark_process_dead() which
-    only removes gauge_live* files — counter and histogram files are
-    preserved since they contain cumulative data needed for correct
-    aggregation until the directory is wiped on next startup.
-    """
+    """Mark the current process as dead via mark_process_dead() (worker shutdown)."""
     directory = _get_multiproc_dir()
     if not directory or not os.path.isdir(directory):
         return
@@ -126,18 +87,7 @@ def cleanup_own_pid_files() -> None:
 
 
 def mark_dead_pids(skip_pid: Optional[int] = None) -> None:
-    """
-    Scan the prometheus multiproc directory and call mark_process_dead()
-    for PIDs that no longer exist.
-
-    Uses prometheus_client.multiprocess.mark_process_dead() which only
-    removes gauge_live* files — counter and histogram files are preserved
-    since they contain cumulative data needed for correct aggregation.
-
-    Args:
-        skip_pid: PID to skip (typically os.getpid()). If None, skips
-                  the current process's PID.
-    """
+    """Scan for dead PIDs and call mark_process_dead() for each. Skips current process by default."""
     directory = _get_multiproc_dir()
     if not directory or not os.path.isdir(directory):
         return