Impact of Bundled Intervention on Outcomes of Patients Undergoing Clean Orthopedic Surgeries With Hardware Implants:...

Prosthesis-related infections (PRIs) and surgical site infections (SSIs) remain one of the most devastating complications among patients undergoing clean orthopedic surgeries. Prevention strategies are critical to reduce infection rates in orthopedic surgeries. The current study aimed to determine the effectiveness of a set of evidence-based practices (bundled intervention) in reducing the incidence of PRIs and SSIs among patients undergoing clean orthopedic surgeries with hardware implants. A prospective, interventional randomized controlled trial was conducted for a period of three years. A total of 597 patients were enrolled, and depending on their Staphylococcus aureus carrier status were categorized into carrier group (n = 98) and non-carrier group (n = 499). Only carrier group patients were analyzed for effectiveness of bundled interventions, after being randomly assigned to two subgroups: interventional carrier group (ICG; n = 50) and non-interventional carrier group (NICG; n = 48). Of the 597 patients, 98 (16.4%) were colonized with Staphylococcus aureus, among whom 9 (19.4%) had methicillin resistance. During follow-up, overall infection rate of 1.1% was observed (PRI, 0.3%; SSI, 0.8%). There was no case of PRI/SSI in the ICG. However, in the NICG, one patient developed SSI because of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. An endogenous source of infection was demonstrated by pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). The SSI rate was higher in the NICG (p = 0.002). In the non-carrier group (n = 499), SSIs/PRIs occurred among 1.2% of the patients, because of organisms other than Staphylococcus aureus. Benefit of bundle intervention approach could be demonstrated. Further studies assessing the effectiveness of the individual components of the bundle can inform clinical practice greatly.