Faculty Collaboration Database

Risk factors for predicting surgical salvage of sternal wound-healing complications. Ann Plast Surg 1999 Jul;43(1):30-5

Date

07/14/1999

Pubmed ID

10402984

DOI

10.1097/00000637-199907000-00005

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-0032975227 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   23 Citations

Abstract

A retrospective study was performed to determine whether clinical factors can predict which complicated poststernotomy wounds can be managed successfully by debridement and reclosure, and which wounds require a muscle flap for healing. Between January 1990 and December 1996, 3,435 median sternotomies were performed at Indiana University Medical Center and affiliated hospitals. A total of 91 patients (2.6%) were reoperated for sternal wound-healing complications. Seventy-six patients (83.5%) underwent debridement and rewiring, and 15 patients (16.5%) underwent primary flap coverage. Of the 76 patients who underwent initial rewiring, 45 (59%) healed and 31 (41%) required additional operative procedures. Of the 31 rewiring failures, 26 patients (84%) were healed with muscle flaps and 4 patients (13%) were managed with a second successful rewiring. The following clinical factors were correlated with operative procedure and outcome: history of smoking, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, steroid use, previous sternotomy, age, diabetes, harvest of the left or right internal mammary artery (IMA), emergency operation, operation time, pump time, cross-clamp time, ischemic time, coronary artery bypass grafting alone versus combined with a valve replacement, positive wound cultures, positive blood cultures, elevated white blood cell count, and fever. When comparing patients with successful rewiring with those who had a failed rewiring, positive wound and blood cultures were significant risk factors (p < 0.05) on univariate analysis. Presence of a positive wound culture was significant on multivariate analysis. When comparing risk factors in patients who were rewired successfully versus all patients who had muscle flap coverage, the presence of a positive blood culture was significant on both univariate and multivariate analyses. We conclude patients most likely to fail rewiring and to require muscle flap closure are those with infected wounds, positive blood cultures, and possibly left IMA bypasses.

Author List

Golosow LM, Wagner JD, Feeley M, Sharp T, Havlik R, Sood R, Coleman JJ

Author

Robert Havlik MD Chair, Professor in the Plastic Surgery department at Medical College of Wisconsin

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Bacteremia
Bone Wires
Debridement
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Reoperation
Risk Factors
Sternum
Surgical Flaps
Surgical Wound Infection
Treatment Outcome
Wound Healing