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Background: Observational studies have shown reduced perioperative bleeding in patients undergoing minimally invasive, compared with full sternotomy, aortic valve replacement. Data from randomized trials are conflicting., Methods: This was a Swedish single center study where adult patients with aortic stenosis, 100 patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to undergo either minimally invasive (ministernotomy) or full sternotomy aortic valve replacement. The primary outcome was severe or massive bleeding defined by the Universal Definition of Perioperative Bleeding in adult cardiac surgery (UDPB). Secondary outcomes included blood product transfusions, chest tube output, re-exploration for bleeding, and several other clinically relevant events., Results: Out of 100 patients, three patients randomized to ministernotomy were intraoperatively converted to full sternotomy (none was bleeding-related). Three patients (6%) in the full sternotomy group and 3 patients (6%) in the ministernotomy group suffered severe or massive postoperative bleeding according to the UDPB definition (p = 1.00). Mean chest tube output during the first 12 postoperative hours was 350 (standard deviation (SD) 220) ml in the full sternotomy group and 270 (SD 190) ml in the ministernotomy group (p = 0.08). 28% of patients in the full sternotomy group and 36% of patients in the ministernotomy group received at least one packed red blood cells transfusion (p = 0.39). Two patients in each group (4%) underwent re-exploration for bleeding., Conclusions: Minimally invasive aortic valve replacement did not result in less bleeding-related outcomes compared to full sternotomy., Clinical Trial Registration: http://www., Clinicaltrials: gov . Unique identifier: NCT02272621., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Coronary artery by-pass grafting (CABG) remains the optimal strategy in achieving complete revascularization in patients with complex coronary artery disease. However, sternal wound infections (SWI), especially deep SWI are potentially severe complications to the surgery. At the department of cardiothoracic surgery in Uppsala University Hospital a gradual increase in all types of SWI occurred, which peaked in 2009. This prompted an in-depth revision of the whole surgical process. To monitor the frequency of post-operative infections all patients receive a questionnaire that enquires whether any treatment for wound infection has been carried out., Methods: All patients operated with isolated CABG between start of 2006 and end of 2012 were included in the study. 1515 of 1642 patients answered and returned the questionnaire (92.3 %). The study period is divided into the time before the intervention program was implemented (2006-early 2010) and the time after the intervention (early 2010- end 2012). To assess whether potential differences in frequency of SWI were a consequence of change in the characteristics of the patient population rather than an effect of the intervention a retrospective assessment of medical records was performed, where multiple of the most known risk factors for developing SWI were studied., Results: We noticed a clear decrease in the frequency of SWI after the intervention. This was not a consequence of a healthier population., Conclusions: Our results from implementing the intervention program are positive in that they reduce the number of SWI. As several changes in the perioperative care were introduced simultaneously we cannot deduce which is the most effective.

Background: Prophylactic local application of collagen-gentamicin sponges for prevention of sternal wound infections (SWI) after cardiac surgery has been used routinely in risk patients for several years at our center. However, a recent US study failed to show a significant reduction in SWI with the prophylaxis. Therefore, a systematic reevaluation of the effect of local collagen gentamicin was conducted., Methods: A complete follow-up of all cardiac surgery patients 2 months postoperatively was achieved. All SWIs were recorded. The effect of the prophylaxis was analyzed, and differences in risk factors were compensated for using multiple logistic regression analyses and Coarsened Exact Matching (CEM)., Results: A total of 950 patients were included. Established risk factors for SWI were confirmed. The use of collagen-gentamicin prophylaxis was independently associated with a highly significant reduction in SWI (odds ratio [OR] = 0.30, 95% confidence interval = 0.16 to 0.57; p < 0.001). Applying the more advanced statistical method, CEM indicated that the effect of the prophylaxis may be even greater., Conclusions: The use of local collagen-gentamicin prophylaxis was associated with an approximately 70% reduction in the rate of SWI compared with standard intravenous antibiotic prophylaxis alone., (Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.)

Aim: We sought to compare clinical outcomes, in-hospital mortality and 1-year survival of two different treatment modalities of deep sternal wound infection, topical negative pressure and the closed irrigation therapy., Methods: Retrospective analysis of 66 consecutive patients treated for deep sternal infection at our institution. A total of 28 patients (February 2002 through September 2004) underwent primarily closed irrigation therapy, and 34 patients (November 2004 through December 2007) had the application of topical negative pressure. Four patients (July 2004 through December 2004) who underwent a combination of both strategies were excluded from the study. Clinical and wound care outcomes were compared, focusing on therapeutic failure rate, in-hospital stay and the 1-year mortality of both treatment strategies., Results: Topical negative pressure was associated with a significantly lower failure rate of the primary therapy (P<0.05), shortening of the intensive care unit stay (P<0.001), a particular decrease in the in-hospital stay (P<0.05) and the 1-year mortality (P<0.05) in comparison with closed irrigation therapy. Comparable overall length of the therapy, in-hospital stay and the risk of wire-related fistulas after chest reconstruction were found., Conclusion: Topical negative pressure is a superior method of treatment for deep sternal wound infection, which is based on lower therapeutic failure rate, significant decrease in-hospital stay, and the decrease of the 1-year mortality rate, compared with primarily applied closed irrigation.

Negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has been used for the treatment of deep sternal wound infection (DSWI) with promising results. However, questions have been raised regarding the potential risk of right ventricle (RV) rupture during treatment. In the present study, we evaluate our clinical experience of NPWT focusing on RV rupture and major bleeding complications and its potentially negative impact on 30-day mortality during an 11-year period. Serious bleeding complications during NPWT were reviewed for 176 patients treated for DSWI between January 1999 and April 2010. The 30-day mortality following DSWI was 1.1% (2/176). Four patients (2.3%) suffered bleeding from the RV rupture during NPWT of the sternal wound (two spontaneous and two debridement related). Furthermore, two patients had debridement-related bleedings from the venous bypass grafts during wound dressing change. The very low 30-day mortality (1.1%) following DSWI supports the use of NPWT. Overall, even if major bleeding complications may occur, the risk of RV rupture seems to be outweighed by the benefit of superior infection control. However, surgical experience is recommended when debriding sternal wounds and we recommend the use of a wound dressing, such as paraffin gauze, in order to protect the RV from direct contact with the polyurethane foam.

In open surgery, heat is lost due to radiation and evaporation through the wound. Hypothermia causes tissue hypoxia and impairs various cellular immune functions that increases the risk for postoperative wound infections and delayed wound healing. The patient's body is usually well protected with heating arrangements, but the open wound is left unprotected and until now no practical method has been available to protect it thermically. We therefore investigated if insufflation of an open surgical wound with carbon dioxide would affect wound temperature. In 10 patients undergoing cardiac surgery, the sternotomy wound was insufflated with dry, room temperature carbon dioxide via a gas diffuser for 2 minutes. A heat-sensitive camera measured the wound temperature before, during, and after insufflation. Exposure to carbon dioxide increased the median temperature of the whole wound by 0.5 degrees C (p=0.01). The temperature of the area distant to the diffuser increased by 1.2 degrees C (p<0.01) whereas in the area close to the diffuser it decreased by 1.8 degrees C (p<0.01). In conclusion, short-term insufflation of dry room temperature carbon dioxide in an open wound increases the surface temperature significantly. Although a small increase, it may reduce the incidence of postoperative wound infections in the future.