Study Design Retrospective analysis. Objective The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a surgical site infection (SSI) prevention protocol instituted in the Orthopaedic Spine Department at our institution. Summary of Background Data SSI is an undesired complication of orthopaedic spine surgeries. It poses a significant risk to the patient, as well as a financial toll on the healthcare system. A wide range of prophylactic measures have been used to attempt to reduce SSI rates. Methods A protocol consisting of a combination of 0.3% Betadine wound irrigation and 1 gram of intra-wound Vancomycin powder application was developed at our institution. Multiple data sources were consolidated for thorough evaluation of changes in SSI rates, patient risk factors, and changes in bacteriology. Identification of risk factors that predispose patients to SSI was performed using mixed effects logistic regression in a univariate fashion. Risk factors with p-values of ≤ 0.05 in univariate analysis were included together in a multivariate mixed effects logistic regression model. Results SSI rates were reduced by 50% following the intervention; Chi square analysis comparing the SSI rates between the pre- and post-intervention periods yielded a p-value of 0.042. Rates of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus dropped from 30% to 7% and the rates of multi-bacterial infections dropped from 37% to 27%. The risk factors that were statistically significant in multivariate analysis were the following: age (OR 0.93), anemia (OR 30.73), prior operation (OR 27.45), and vertebral fracture (OR 22.22). Conclusion The combination of Betadine wound irrigation and intra-wound vancomycin powder application led to both a clinically and statistically significant decrease in SSI rates by 50%. Bacteriology analysis and risk factor assessment proved to be valuable tools in assessing the efficacy of a new prophylactic measure and in the planning of future protocols.

Study DesignRetrospective case-control study using prospectively collected data.PurposeEvaluate the impact of liposomal bupivacaine (LB) on postoperative pain management and narcotic use following standardized single-level low lumbar transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF).Overview of LiteraturePoor pain control after surgery has been linked with decreased pain satisfaction and increased economic burden. Unfortunately, opioids have many limitations and side effects despite being the primary treatment of postoperative pain. LB may be a form of pre-emptive analgesia used to reduce the use of postoperative narcotics as evidence in other studies evaluating its use in single-level microdiskectomies.MethodsThe infiltration of LB subcutaneously during wound closure was performed by a single surgeon beginning in July 2014 for all single-level lumbar TLIF spinal surgeries at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. This cohort was compared against a control cohort of patients who underwent the same surgery by the same surgeon in the preceding 6 months. Statistical analysis was performed on relevant variables including: morphine equivalents of narcotic medication used (primary outcome), length of hospitalization, Visual Analog Scale pain scores, and total time spent on a patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) pump.ResultsA total of 30 patients were included in this study; 16 were in the intervention cohort and 14 were in the control cohort. The morphine equivalents of intravenous narcotic use postoperatively were significantly less in the LB cohort from day of surgery to postoperative day 3. Although the differences lost their statistical significance, the trend remained for total (oral and intravenous) narcotic consumption to be lower in the LB group. The patients who received the study intervention required an acute pain service consult less frequently (62.5% in LB cohort vs. 78.6% in control cohort). The amount of time spent on a PCA pump in the LB group was 31 hours versus 47 hours in the control group (p=0.1506).ConclusionsLocal infiltration of LB postoperatively to the subcutaneous tissues during closure following TLIF significantly decreased the amount of intravenous narcotic medication required by patients. Well-powered prospective studies are still needed to determine optimal dosing and confirm benefits of LB on total narcotic consumption and other measures of pain control following major spinal surgery.