Wound management with vacuum-assisted closure in postoperative infections after surgery for spinal stenosis

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the results of negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) in the treatment of surgical spinal site infections. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The use of NPWT in postoperative infections after dorsal spinal surgery (transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion plus posterior instrumentation) was studied retrospectively. From February 2011 to January 2012, six patients (females) out of 317 (209 females; 108 males) were readmitted to our clinic with surgical site infections on postoperative day 14 (range 9–19) and were treated with debridement, NPWT, and antibiotics. We evaluated the clinical and laboratory data, including the ability to retain the spinal hardware and recurrent infections. RESULTS: The incidence of deep postoperative surgical site infection was six (1.89%) patients (females) out of 317 patients (209 females; 108 males) at 1 year. All patients completed their wound NPWT regimen successfully. An average of 5.1 (range 3–8) irrigation and debridement sessions was performed before definitive wound closure. The mean follow-up period was 13 (range 12–16) months. No patient had a persistent infection requiring partial or total hardware removal. The hospital stay infection parameters normalized within an average of 4.6 weeks. CONCLUSION: The study illustrates the usefulness of NPWT as an effective adjuvant treatment option for managing complicated deep spinal surgical wound infections.