Successful therapy for a patient with aortic graft infection without graft removal

Following Bentall surgery, aortic graft infection can be a serious complication with high mortality rates. The recommended treatment for aortic graft infection is to explant the graft; however, because of the high risk and costs involved, this might not always be an option. We report successful treatment of a case of aortic graft infection without removal of the infected graft.

A 43-year-old man with aortic graft infection was treated by local debridement, continuous antibiotic irrigation with intermittent fast irrigation, drainage, and nutritional support in combination with systemic antibiotics.

The patient was discharged 24 days after the intervention and the laboratory test values were normalized. Three years after the surgery, the patient was in good condition and showed no signs of infection.

The present case demonstrated that prompt debridement followed by continuous local irrigation, drainage, and nutritional support, in combination with systemic antibiotics, can be effective in the treatment of aortic graft infection. One of the most important aspects in such complicated situations is early diagnosis and optimal treatment. Our results are encouraging; however, because it was only a single case, we feel more research with a larger prospective randomized trial is warranted.