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Which method is the most effective for preventing postoperative infection in spinal surgery?

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Abstract

Background

Several methods have been used to reduce the infection rate in spinal surgeries with instrumentation.

Purpose

Which method is the most effective for preventing postoperative infection?

Study design

Basic science, animal model.

Objective

In the present study, the efficiency of antibiotic prophylaxis, silver-plated screws, and local rifamycin application to the surgical site was investigated in an experimental animal model. Staphylococcus aureus was used as the pathogen.

Methods

Fifty 6-month-old female Wistar albino rats were used. The animals were randomly numbered and divided into five groups of ten rats each (Group 1, control group; Group 2, titanium screw and S. aureus inoculation; Group 3, titanium screw, 0.1 ml rifamycin application to the surgical area, and bacterial inoculation; Group 4, titanium screw, single preoperative dose of IM cefazolin, and bacterial inoculation; Group 5, silver-plated screw and bacterial inoculation). Titanium micro-screws were placed into the pedicles. The control group received a sterile isotonic solution, and the other four groups received bacterial suspensions containing S. aureus. The animals were killed 15 days later.

Results

Intensive S. aureus growth was observed in all tissue and screw samples from Group 2. The results for Group 3 were similar to those for Group 1, no growth was observed in the screw cultures. Intensive growth was observed in the five screw samples in Group 4 and in the eight samples in Group 5.

Conclusion

Our study suggests that rifamycin application to the surgical area in spinal operations with instrumentation is an effective method to prevent S. aureus infections.

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Conflict of interest

None.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, Gaziosmanpasa University, Tokat, Turkey

    Erol Oksuz, Fatih Ersay Deniz & Ozgur Demir

  2. Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Gaziosmanpasa University, Tokat, Turkey

    Ozgur Gunal & Sener Barut

  3. Department of Pathology, Gaziosmanpasa University, Tokat, Turkey

    Fatma Markoc

  4. Department of Statistics, Sakarya University, Sakarya, Turkey

    Unal Erkorkmaz

  5. Kaşıkcıbagları m. Ahmet Yesevi c., 8. Sok. No: 3, 60000, Merkez, Tokat, Turkey

    Erol Oksuz

Authors
  1. Erol Oksuz
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  2. Fatih Ersay Deniz
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  3. Ozgur Gunal
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  4. Ozgur Demir
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  5. Sener Barut
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  6. Fatma Markoc
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  7. Unal Erkorkmaz
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Correspondence to Erol Oksuz.

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Oksuz, E., Deniz, F.E., Gunal, O. et al. Which method is the most effective for preventing postoperative infection in spinal surgery?. Eur Spine J 25, 1006–1011 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00586-015-3941-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00586-015-3941-y

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