Epidemiology of septic arthritis of the knee at Hospital das Clínicas, Universidade de São Paulo

BACKGROUND: Septic arthritis is an infrequent disease although very important due to the possibility of disastrous outcomes if treatment is not adequately established. Adequate information concerning the epidemiology of septic arthritis is still lacking due to the uncommon nature of the disease as well as the struggle to establish a correct case-definition. OBJECTIVE: To epidemiologically characterize the population seen at Hospital das Clínicas, University of São Paulo with a diagnosis of septic arthritis between 2006 and 2011. METHODS: Sixty-one patients diagnosed with septic arthritis of the knee between 2006 and 2011 were retrospectively evaluated. The patients’ clinical and epidemiological characteristics, the microorganisms that caused the infection and the patients’ treatment and evolution were analyzed. RESULTS: Septic arthritis of the knee was more common among men, with distribution across a variety of age ranges. Most diagnoses were made through positive synovial fluid cultures. The most prevalent clinical comorbidities were systemic arterial hypertension and diabetes mellitus, and the most commonly reported joint disease was osteoarthritis. Staphylococcus aureus was the prevailing pathogen. Fever was present in 36% of the cases. All patients presented elevation in inflammatory tests. Gram staining was positive in only 50.8% of the synovial fluid samples analyzed. Six patients presented complications and unfavorable evolution of their condition. CONCLUSION: S. aureus is still the most common pathogen in acute knee infections in our environment. Gram staining, absence of fever and normal leukocyte count cannot be used to rule out septic arthritis.