Is long time to reimplantation a risk factor for reinfection in two-stage revision for periprosthetic infection? A systematic review of the literature

The two-stage revision arthroplasty is a common treatment option for chronic periprosthetic infection (PJI). The time to reimplantation (TTR) reported in the literature varies substantially from a few days to several hundred days. It is hypothesized that longer TTR could be associated with worse infection control after second stage. A systematic literature search was performed according to Preferred Reporting items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, in Pubmed, Cochrane Library and Web of Science Core Collection in clinical studies published until January 2023. Eleven studies investigating TTR as a potential risk factor for reinfection met the inclusion criteria (ten retrospective and one prospective study, published 2012–2022). Study design and outcome measures differed notably. The cutoff points above which TTR was regarded as “long” ranged from 4 to 18 weeks. No study observed a benefit for long TTR. In all studies, similar or even better infection control was observed for short TTR. The optimal TTR, however, is not yet defined. Larger clinical studies with homogeneous patient populations and adjustment for confounding factors are needed.