title: Long-term follow-up of positive cultures in 500 abdominal aortic aneurysms.
abstract: Routine aneurysm culture is frequently performed as it is thought that a positive culture could be a risk factor for secondary graft infection. Five hundred aneurysms, in a series of 796 patients, had microbiologic examination of the thrombus and/or aneurysm wall. Cultures were positive in 185 cases (37%), mostly due to normal skin flora microorganisms (80%), whereas 16 patients (3.2%) had infectious aortitis. Gram-stained smears were positive in nine of these 16 patients compared with two of the other 169. Of the 185 patients with positive culture, after a mean length of follow-up of 35 months, only one had a graft infection that occurred 6 years later and was not due to the same microorganism. Graft sepsis was diagnosed in six of the 296 patients who did not have a positive culture, and was related to clinically obvious locoregional or systemic foci. In this series, positive cultures from aneurysm without rupture or signs of infection were not a risk factor for secondary graft sepsis. Therefore, in cases of asymptomatic unruptured aneurysm, routine culturing is not necessary as a positive result has no pathogenic significance or therapeutic implication.
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Hôpital Saint Joseph, Paris, France.
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Farkas
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Fichelle
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Laurian
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jean-Baptiste
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gigou
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Marzelle
authors.forename: F W
authors.initials: FW
authors.lastname: Goldstein
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Cormier
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001012:Aorta, Abdominal / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000601:surgery; D017544:Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000601:surgery; D001019:Aortic Rupture / Q000382:microbiology; D001025:Aortitis / Q000382:microbiology; D001419:Bacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D003352:Corynebacterium / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections; D013210:Staphylococcus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D013927:Thrombosis / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents