title: Adjunctive vancomycin powder in pediatric spine surgery is safe.
abstract: METHODS
  Therapeutic level II cohort study.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the safety of adjunctive local application of vancomycin powder (VP) for infection prophylaxis in posterior instrumented thoracic and lumbar spine wounds in pediatric patients weighing more than 25 kg.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Spine surgeons have largely turned to vancomycin prophylaxis in an attempt to decrease the incidence of late surgical site infection and acute surgical site infection from methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. In adult patients, the adjunctive local application of VP with an intravenous cephalosporin has been shown to decrease postsurgical wound infection rates significantly; however, the safety of VP as an adjunct in pediatric spine surgery has not been reported.
  
  
  METHODS
  We reviewed data collected under a systematic protocol specifically designed to monitor the safety profile of VP. We measured changes in creatinine and systemic vancomycin levels after intrawound application of 500 mg of unreconstituted VP during spine deformity correction surgery in patients weighing more than 25 kg (patients also received routine intravenous cephalosporin prophylaxis). Laboratory values were measured preoperatively and on postoperative days 1 and 4. Any adverse reactions and infections through available follow-up (2-8 mo) were recorded.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eighty-seven consecutive pediatric patients with spinal deformity weighing more than 25 kg who received intraoperative VP during a 9-month period were identified. Sixty-three percent of the patients in this series had adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, 15% congenital scoliosis, 15% neuromuscular scoliosis, and 5% spondylolisthesis. The average change in creatinine levels between the preoperative and postoperative day 1 draw was -0.03 and between the preoperative and postoperative day 4 draw was -0.075. The postoperative systemic vancomycin levels remained undetectable. None of the patients experienced nephrotoxicity or red man syndrome. Three of the 87 patients developed a surgical site infection.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this cohort there were no clinically significant changes in creatinine level or systemic vancomycin level caused by use of intraoperative VP.
  
  
  METHODS
  2.
authors.affiliation: *The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA; and †The Hospital of The University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
authors.forename: Itai
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gans
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Dormans
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Spiegel
authors.forename: John M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Flynn
authors.forename: Wudbhav N
authors.initials: WN
authors.lastname: Sankar
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.forename: Keith D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Baldwin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D019072:Antibiotic Prophylaxis / Q000379:methods*; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000187:drug effects / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D011208:Powders; D012600:Scoliosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae / Q000187:drug effects / Q000601:surgery; D014640:Vancomycin / Q000008:administration & dosage*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D011208:Powders; D014640:Vancomycin