Are deep infections that present before and after 90 days from orthopaedic trauma different? An analysis of the validity of the recent change in CDC criteria for infections

The global burden of fracture-related infection: can we do better?

Fracture-related infection is a major complication related to musculoskeletal injuries that not only has important clinical consequences, but also a substantial socioeconomic impact. Although fracture-related infection is one of the oldest disease entities known to mankind, it has only recently been defined and, therefore, its global burden is still largely unknown. In this Personal View, we describe the origin of the term fracture-related infection, present the available data on its global impact, and discuss important aspects regarding its prevention and management that could lead to improved outcomes in both high-resource and low-resource settings. We also highlight the need for health-care systems to be adequately compensated for the high cost of human resources (trained staff) and well-equipped facilities required to adequately care for these complex patients. Our aim is to increase awareness among clinicians and policy makers that fracture-related infection is a disease entity that deserves prioritisation in terms of research, with the goal to standardise treatment and improve patient outcomes on a global scale.

Factors Associated With Pelvic Infection After Pre-Peritoneal Pelvic Packing for Hemodynamically Unstable Pelvic Fractures

Background: Preperitoneal pelvic packing (PPP) and external fixation has led to improved mortality after devastating pelvic trauma. However, there is limited literature on infection after this intervention. We aim to study the risk factors associated with pelvic infection after PPP. Patients and Methods: A retrospective review of patients who underwent PPP at a single level 1 trauma center was performed. Results: Over the 18-year study period, 222 patients were identified. Twenty-three percent of patients had an open fracture. Pelvic angiography was performed in 24% of patients with 16% requiring angioembolization (AE). The average time to packing removal was two (one to two days) days, although 10% of patients had their pelvis re-packed. Overall infection rate was 14% (n = 31); if pelvic re-packing was performed, the infection rate increased to 45%. Twenty-two of the patients with an infection required additional procedures for their infection, and ultimately hardware removal occurred in eight patients. On univariable analysis, patients with pelvic infections had more open fractures (55% vs. 17%; p < 0.01), underwent AE more frequently (29% vs. 14%; p = 0.04), were more likely to undergo repacking (32% vs. 6%; p < 0.01), and had packing in place for longer (2 [1,2] vs. 2 [2,3]; p = 0.01). On logistic multivariable regression analysis, open fracture (odds ratio [OR], 5.8; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.4-14.1) and pelvic re-packing (OR, 4.7; 95% CI, 1.2-18.5) were independent risk factors for pelvic infection. Conclusions: Pelvic infection after PPP is a serious complication independently associated with open fracture and re-packing of the pelvis. Re-intervention was required in most patients with infection.

Epidemiology and Treatment of Surgical Infection after Ankle Arthroscopy: A Systematic Review

Background: Ankle arthroscopy is indicated for both diagnosis and treatment of a large spectrum of common ankle disorders. It has certain advantages over the open procedure; however, it is important to recognize that there are some complications associated with it. Infections after this procedure are quite uncommon, with an overall estimated incidence of 2%. Given the low incidence of infections after ankle arthroscopy, not a great deal of literature on the topic has been published. The present review aims to provide an overview of the incidence, diagnosis, and treatment of infections after ankle arthroscopy. Methods: A systematic review of the literature indexed in the PubMed, MEDLINE, and Cochrane Library databases using search term "ankle arthroscopy infections" was performed in November 2023. No restrictions were applied concerning the date of publication. The Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) were followed. Among all surgical operations for the treatment of ankle and foot pathologies, we included articles with a described superficial or deep infection after ankle arthroscopy. Results: The search resulted in 201 studies. Only 21 studies met our inclusion criteria, and they were included in this systematic review. We evaluated 1706 patients who underwent 1720 arthroscopic tibiotalar procedures at an average age of 42 years old. Out of the 1720 procedures, 41 (2%) were complicated by infection. We divided infectious complications into superficial (68%; 28/41) and deep (32%; 13/41) infections. The most common pathogen isolated was Staphylococcus aureus. Arthroscopic arthrodesis was found to be the most affected by deep infections. Conclusions: Infection after ankle arthroscopy is an uncommon complication. Superficial infections were successfully treated with antibiotics, while surgical debridement, arthroscopic drainage, and intravenous antibiotics were necessary in cases of deep infections. Considering the amount of information on pathogens associated with knee and shoulder infections, there is still a lack of literature on pathogens associated with ankle infections, which makes their management difficulty.

Diagnostic Performance of a telephone questionnaire for fracture-related infections (FRIs) in open tibia fracture patients in Tanzania

INTRODUCTION

Fracture-related infections (FRIs) are a major cause of trauma-associated morbidity worldwide. In 2018, an expert group supported by the AO Foundation, European Bone and Joint Infection Society developed a consensus definition of FRI. Still, there is limited knowledge on the applicability of this definition in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Given the unique barriers that cause low follow-up rates for orthopaedic trauma patients in LMICs, this study aims to evaluate the diagnostic performance of a telephone questionnaire in identifying patients with FRIs after open tibia fracture fixation in Tanzania.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Patients from a randomized controlled trial investigating the infection prevention benefit of locally applied gentamycin for open tibial fractures were included. Patients completed FRI based telephone questionnaires 7-10 days prior to scheduled follow-ups at 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 1 year. The questionnaire included two "confirmatory" criteria questions for FRI (i.e., open wound and purulent drainage) and three "suggestive" criteria questions (i.e., wound drainage, fever, and warmth). Contingency tests were performed to identify the sensitivity and specificity between answers and adjudicated FRI diagnoses at the corresponding in-person follow-up. Data was analysed using STATA version 15.0 and MedCalc's online diagnostic test calculator.

RESULTS

There were a total of 234 complete questionnaires and 85 unique patients included. The sensitivity and specificity of having any positive answer in the questionnaire was highest at 6 months (100 % and 92.5 %, respectively). For all time-points pooled, sensitivity was 71.4 % and specificity was 93.0 %. Drainage had the highest sensitivity (71.4 %) while fever had the highest specificity (99.6 %). For confirmatory criteria, sensitivity was 14.3 % and specificity was 96.0 %. Contrastingly, the sensitivity for suggestive criteria was higher (71.4 %), with a similar specificity (93.8 %).

CONCLUSION

Our study indicates that telephone questionnaires have adequate diagnostic performance when assessing FRIs. The presence of drainage identified the majority of patients with FRI, and specificities were high across confirmatory and suggestive criteria. Our study is one of the first to evaluate telephone questionnaires as a diagnostic tool for FRIs in patients with open tibia fractures in a LMIC hospital and validates the FRI consensus definition criteria.

Use of Conditionally Essential Amino Acids and the Economic Burden of Postoperative Complications After Fracture Fixation: Results from a Cost Utility Analysis

Objective

To measure the economic impact of conditionally essential amino acids (CEAA) among patients with operative treatment for fractures.

Methods

A decision tree model was created to estimate changes in annual health care costs and quality of life impact due to complications after patients underwent operative treatment to address a traumatic fracture. The intervention of interest was the use of CEAA alongside standard of care as compared to standard of care alone. Patients were required to be aged ≥18 and receive the surgery in a US Level 1 trauma center. The primary outcomes were rates of post-surgical complications, changes in patient quality adjusted life years (QALYs), and changes in cost. Cost savings were modeled as the incremental costs (in 2022 USD) of treating complications due to changes in complication rates.

Results

The per-patient cost of complications under CEAA use was $12,215 compared to $17,118 under standard of care without CEAA. The net incremental cost savings per patient with CEAA use was $4902, accounting for a two-week supply cost of CEAA. The differences in quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) under CEAA use and no CEAA use was 0.013 per person (0.739 vs 0.726). Modeled to the US population of patients requiring fracture fixations in trauma centers, the total value of CEAA use compared to no CEAA use was $316 million with an increase of 813 QALYs per year. With a gain of 0.013 QALYs per person, valued at $150,000, and the incremental cost savings of $4902 resulted in net monetary benefit of $6852 per patient. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio showed that the use of CEAA dominated standard of care.

Conclusion

CEAA use after fracture fixation surgery is cost saving. Level of Evidence: Level 1 Economic Study.

Surgical site infections after stabilization of pelvic ring injuries: a retrospective analysis of risk factors and a meta-analysis of similar studies

PURPOSE

Pelvic ring fractures requiring surgical stabilization are severe injuries. Surgical site infections occurring after stabilization of the pelvis are serious complications, requiring complex and multidisciplinary treatment.

METHODS

This is a retrospective observational study from a level I trauma centre. One hundred and ninety-two patients who underwent stabilization of closed pelvic ring injuries without signs of pathological fracture were selected for inclusion into the study. After excluding seven patients for having incomplete data, the final study group consisted of 185 patients (117 men and 68 women). Basic epidemiologic data and potential risk factors were recorded and analyzed by Cox regression, Kaplan-Meier curves, and risk ratios in 2 × 2 tables. Categorical variables were compared by Fisher exact tests and chi squared tests. Parametric variables were analyzed with Kruskal-Wallis tests with post hoc Wilcoxon tests.

RESULTS

Surgical site infections occurred in 13% of the study group (24 from 185). Eighteen infections occurred in men (15.4%) and six in women (8.8%). There were two significant risk factors in women: age over 50 years (p = 0.0232) and concomitant urogenital trauma (p = 0.0104). The common risk ratio for both these factors was 212.59 (8.78-5148.68), p = 0.0010. No significant risk factors were identified in men despite younger men having a higher incidence of infection (p = 0.1428).

CONCLUSION

Overall rate of infectious complications was higher than in the literature, but this might be caused by inclusion of all patients regardless of surgical strategy. Higher age in women and lower age in men were associated with higher infection rates. Concomitant urogenital trauma was a significant risk factor in women.

Risk factors of wound infection after lung transplantation: a narrative review

Background and Objective

The incidence of incision infection after lung transplantation is prominently high which affect the prognosis. Summarizing the risk factors related to incision infection after lung transplantation contribute to the control of incision infection by pre-controlling the risk factors. The objective is to summarize risk factors related to wound infection after lung transplantation.

Methods

PubMed was used to research the literature relating to the risk factors to incision infection after lung transplantation through 1990 to 2022. The retrieval strategy were Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) terms combined entry terms. Two researchers conducted the literature retrieval independently. Two researchers independently evaluate the quality of the literature and summarize the indicators.

Key Content and Findings

A total of 98 researches were collected from PubMed and 8 articles described the related risk factors of incision infection after lung transplantation. All of the 8 articles were retrospective studies, of which 4 articles were grouped by the delayed chest closure (DCC) execution and the other 4 articles were grouped by the surgical site infection (SSI) occurred. Two articles performed multivariate regression analysis to determine the independent risk factors of SSI after lung transplantation and the other 6 articles compared the SSI rate in different patients population. The integrated results showed that bronchoalveolar lavages (BALs), smoking status, body mass index (BMI), diabetes, operation duration, thoracic drainage tube placement time and DCC were related to the SSI after lung transplantation.

Conclusions

BALs, smoking status, BMI, diabetes, operation duration, thoracic drainage tube placement time and DCC were related to the SSI after lung transplantation.