title: Vacuum assisted closure in vascular surgery.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Vacuum assisted closure (VAC-therapy) is a well established method in nearly all surgical disciplines. The aim is to present the efficiency of vacuum assisted closure in the treatment of acute and chronic wounds in patients admitted in the department of vascular surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  Within the year 2008 there were 59 patients (44 men, 15 women) treated with VAC therapy in our Department of Vascular surgery (Landshut, Germany). VAC was used 22x (37.28 %) in therapy of ulcus cruris (venous, arterial, mixed genesis), 15x (25.42%) in patients with diabetic foot syndrome, 12x (20.33%) in secondary healing wounds and infected wounds, 5x (8.47%) in wounds after several injuries and soft skin tissue infections and 5x (8.47%) in wound infections connected with vascular graft infections after vascular revascularization.
  
  
  RESULTS
  VAC therapy seems to be very effective in the management of patients with venous ulcers, especially after a proper surgical treatment (100%), patients with soft skin tissue infections (100%) and secondary healing wounds (100%) especially in combination with MESH-Grafting. In patients with diabetic foot syndrome (80%) and peripheral arterial occlusive disease (72.7%), an evaluation of peripheral blood perfusion and revascularization prior to VAC therapy is often necessary. Although VAC was used 5x in the therapy of infected vascular grafts, successful preservation of infected graft material was observed in only one case (infection of PTFE femoro-popliteal bypass graft).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Vacuum assisted closure in vascular surgery proved to be simple and efficient method in therapy of acute and chronic wounds. The efficiency of VAC systems in therapy of infected graft material after revascularization needs further studies (Tab. 3, Ref. 10).
authors.affiliation: KKH Landshut, Achdorf Akademisches Lehrkrankenhaus, TU München, Germany. mbeno69@yahoo.com
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Beno
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sager
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D054843:Negative-Pressure Wound Therapy; D014656:Vascular Surgical Procedures