Retrospective study of deep surgical site infections following spinal surgery and the effectiveness of continuous irrigation

Abstract. Introduction: Management of surgical site infections (SSI) after instrumented spinal surgery remains controversial. The debridement-irrigation, antibiotic therapy and implant retention protocol (DAIR protocol) is safe and effective to treat deep SSI occurring within the 3 months after instrumented spinal surgery.Methods: This retrospective study describes the outcomes of patients treated over a period of 42 months for deep SSI after instrumented spinal surgery according to a modified DAIR protocol.Results: Among 1694 instrumented surgical procedures, deep SSI occurred in 46 patients (2.7%): 41 patients (89%) experienced early SSI (< 1 month), 3 (7%) delayed SSI (from 1 to 3 months), and 2 (4%) late SSI (> 3months). A total of 37 patients had a minimum 1 year of follow-up; among these the modified DAIR protocol was effective in 28 patients (76%) and failed (need for new surgery for persistent signs of SSI beyond 7 days) in 9 patients (24%). Early second-look surgery (≤ 7days) for iterative debridement was performed in 3 patients, who were included in the cured group. Among the 9 patients in whom the modified DAIR protocol failed, none had early second-look surgery; 3 (33%) recovered and were cured at 1 year follow-up, and 6 (66%) relapsed. Overall, among patients with SSI and a minimum 1 year follow-up, the modified DAIR protocol led to healing in 31/37 (84%) patients.Conclusions: The present study supports the effectiveness of a modified DAIR protocol in deep SSI occurring within the 3 months after instrumented spinal surgery. An early second-look surgery for iterative debridement could increase the success rate of this treatment.

Download Full-text

Implant Retention or Removal for Management of Surgical Site Infection After Spinal Surgery

Global Spine Journal ◽

10.1177/2192568219869330 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 640-646 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Aakash Agarwal ◽

Amey Kelkar ◽

Ashish G. Agarwal ◽

Daksh Jayaswal ◽

Christian Schultz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Staphylococcus Aureus ◽

Spinal Surgery ◽

Late Onset ◽

Removal Rate ◽

Surgical Site Infections ◽

Implant Removal ◽

Continuous Irrigation ◽

Methicillin Resistant ◽

Staphylococcus Epidermis

Study Design: A literature review. Objective: To summarize the implant removal rate, common bacterial organisms found, time of onset, ratio of superficial to deep infection, and regurgitating the prevalence among all the retrospective and prospective studies on management and characterization of surgical site infections (SSIs). Methods: PubMed was searched for articles published between 2000 and 2018 on the management or characterization of SSIs after spinal surgery. Only prospective and retrospective studies were included. Results: A total of 49 articles were found relevant to the objective. These studies highlighted the importance of implant removal to avoid recurrence of SSI. The common organisms detected were methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermis, Staphylococcus epidermis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Propionibacterium acnes, with prevalence of 1% to 15%. A major proportion of all were deep SSI, with minority reporting on late-onset SSI. Conclusion: Long-term antibiotics administration, and continuous irrigation and debridement were common suggestion among the authors; however, the key measure undertaken or implied by most authors to avoid risk of recurrence was removal or replacement of implants for late-onset SSI.

Download Full-text