Efficacy of Prophylactic Negative-Pressure Wound Therapy with Delayed Primary Closure for Contaminated Abdominal Wounds

BACKGROUND: Prophylactic negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) to prevent surgical site infection (SSI) may be effective for severely contaminated wounds. We investigated the safety and efficacy of NPWT with delayed primary closure (DPC) for preventing SSI. METHODS: For patients with contaminated and dirty/infected surgical wounds after an emergency laparotomy, the abdominal fascia was closed with antibacterial absorbent threads and the skin was left open. Negative pressure (−80 mmHg) was applied through the polyurethane foam, which was replaced on postoperative days 3 and 7. DPC was performed when sufficient granulation was observed. The duration and adverse events of NPWT, the development of SSI, and the postoperative hospital stay were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: We analyzed the cases of patients with contaminated (n = 15) and dirty/infected wounds (n = 7). The median duration of NPWT was 7 days (range 5–11 days). NPWT was discontinued in one (4.5%) patient due to wound traction pain. SSI developed in seven patients (31.8%), with incisional SSI in one (4.5%) and organ/space SSI in six (27.3%). The median postoperative hospital stay was 17 days (range 7–91 days). There was no significant relationship between postoperative hospital stay and wound classification (P=0.17) or type of SSI (P=0.07). CONCLUSION: Prophylactic NPWT with DPC was feasible and may be particularly suitable for severely contaminated wounds, with a low incidence of incisional SSI.