Without its complete removal, there is essentially no hope of controlling the infection. The necrotic tissue may be localized, or diffuse.
These chronic fracture site infections also include dead bone and soft tissue.
If internal fixation devices are present, they almost definitively have microorganisms within a layer of adherent slime. Typically, such wounds have failed previous treatment attempts, or have been neglected. Infecting microorganisms should be identified, their antibiotic sensitivities defined, and appropriate specific antibiotics administered as an adjunct to surgical treatment.įracture wounds essentially always include some damaged tissue, thus increasing the risk of infection beyond that seen with early acute hematogenous osteomyelitis (which often responds to antibiotics without surgery).Īn infection which has been present in a fracture wound for more than several weeks is a serious and challenging problem. Internal fixation devices compromise host resistance, and need to be removed unless they provide absolute stability, and infection responds promptly to treatment. Fractures should be stabilized surgically. Wounds should be closed as soon as their condition permits. Necrotic, or severely injured tissue, and foreign materials should be removed surgically. Should infection develop, it is important that this complication be promptly recognized and effectively treated according to basic principles of patient care, surgery, and microbiology.īasically, the factors which reduce a patient’s ability to resist infection should be corrected to the extent possible. Every effort should be made to reduce the risk of infection by following basic principles of fracture care, rather than the illustrated treatment. A surgeon who treats fractures must be aware of factors which affect the risk of infection. Continued abuse of our services will cause your IP address to be blocked indefinitely.A fracture wound that becomes infected almost always results in prolonged treatment and compromised outcome. Please fill out the CAPTCHA below and then click the button to indicate that you agree to these terms. If you wish to be unblocked, you must agree that you will take immediate steps to rectify this issue. If you do not understand what is causing this behavior, please contact us here. If you promise to stop (by clicking the Agree button below), we'll unblock your connection for now, but we will immediately re-block it if we detect additional bad behavior.