The aim of the current study was to evaluate the prevalence of stump infections after major amputations of the lower extremities.Patients rehospitalized in Hospital de Base of the Medicine School in São José do Rio Preto in the period from January 2005 to January 2007 due to stump infection after major amputations of lower extremities were evaluated in a retrospective study. All the patients underwent prophylactic antibiotic therapy at the time of the surgery. The Fisher exact test was utilized for statistical analysis with an alpha error of 5% (p-value < 0.05) being considered acceptable.A total of 231 patients were submitted to major amputations during this period and 17 (7.3%) were rehospitalized due to amputation stump infections of which 5 (29.4%) died within one month. The association between death due to stump infection and other causes of death during rehospitalizations was not significant (Fisher exact test: p < 0.1). However, death during rehospitalizations was significantly higher than in the initial hospitalization.

The aim of this study was to examine any association between the presence of diabetes in patients with gas gangrene of the legs and mortality following major lower limb amputation. In a retrospective study, patients submitted to amputation of lower limbs for anaerobic infections were evaluated in the period from January 2005 to January 2007 in the University Hospital de Base in Sao Jose do Rio Preto. All the patients were hospitalized for the treatment of ulcerated lesions of the leg. The study sample consisted of 30 men and 10 women aged between 46 and 87 years (mean 69 years) suffering from anaerobic infections. During treatment, the presence of crepitation in the skin was observed as was gas by radiological examination. Amputation was performed within 2 to 6 hours after diagnosis. Diabetes was identified in 33 patients and death occurred within the perioperative period in 12 cases. Diabetes is associated with the necessity of amputation for gas gangrene resulting in a high mortality rate.

Abstract:The prevalence of major amputations of lower limbs increases as the population ages. The aim of the current study was to evaluate hospital death in cases of major amputations for critical limb ischemia in a teaching hospital.Hospital mortality during the peri-operative period was evaluated in 231 major amputations of legs due to critical limb ischemia between January 2005 and 2007. Thirty-six (15.6%) deaths occurred in this period, 14 women and 22 men (ages between 47 and 86). Of these patients, 13 (5.6%) died during the first hospitalization and 23 (9.9%) during rehospitalizations within the first month.High death rates were observed in the peri-operative period of major amputations of the lower limbs due to critical limb ischemia.