Mediastinal drainage after open heart surgery: comparison of infectious complications with two different systems

Over the last years disposable systems have replaced in many hospitals the glass bottle drainage equipment used after cardiac surgery. The present study was designed to evaluate the incidence of postoperative infections and technical problems with 2 types of drainage systems. Positive microbial cultures and infectious complication as well as technical incidents were lower with the disposable equipment. The costs of the material alone, when infections are not taken into consideration, are slightly lower for the glass drainage system. We conclude from this survey that the incidence of superinfection of a closed, disposable system for mediastinal drainage is rare and smaller than with conventional glass bottles. When costs of different systems are compared, this consideration may be important.