title: Failure of secondary wound closure after sternal wound infection following failed initial operative treatment: causes and treatment.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patients transferred to Plastic Surgery Departments for sternum osteomyelitis have a high morbidity of about 3%. Despite several known options for sternal wound coverage and salvage operations, wound dehiscence or wound necrosis can occur, increasing patient morbidity.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred thirty-five patients admitted between January 2007 and December 2010 were evaluated in a retrospective study for wound dehiscence after salvage wound coverage at our institution. Various flaps were applied, such as pectoralis major myocutaneous pedicled flaps, pectoralis major muscle pedicled flaps, latissimus dorsi pedicled flaps, greater omental flaps, and vertical rectus abdominis muscle and transverse rectus abdominis muscle flaps. Inclusion criteria were sternal wound infection, bacterial wound infection, previous wound debridement outside our institution, vacuum-assisted closure device wound treatment at our institution, and secondary flap closure of the sternal defect at our institution. A multivariate regression analysis was performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred thirty patients met the inclusion criteria. In all patients, bacterial wound colonization was shown. Forty patients showed wound dehiscence after closure at our institution. Reasons for wound dehiscence were attributed to wound size, >4 different species of bacteria colonizing the wound, gram-negative bacteria, Candida albicans, intensive care unit stay, and female gender. Interestingly, wound dehiscence was not significant correlated to obesity, smoking, atherosclerosis, renal insufficiency or type of closure influenced significantly, or necrosis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Female patients after CABG, with large sternal wounds infected with gram-negative bacteria and candida, have an 85% risk of wound dehiscence after flap coverage for sternal wound infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Hand Surgery, Burns, University Hospital Cologne-Merheim, Germany. phant@kliniken-koeln.de
authors.forename: Truong Q V
authors.initials: TQ
authors.lastname: Phan
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Depner
authors.forename: Panagiotis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Theodorou
authors.forename: Rolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lefering
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Perbix
authors.forename: Gerald
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Spilker
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Weinand
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010019:Osteomyelitis / Q000601:surgery*; D012086:Reoperation; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013249:Sternum; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D013529:Surgical Wound Dehiscence / Q000209:etiology; D014946:Wound Infection / Q000209:etiology; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*