9. The impact of nasal screening for methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus on surgical site infection after primary lumbar fusion

Surgical site infections (SSI) constitute significant morbidity in spine surgery. Efforts at SSI prevention include preoperative methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) screening and decolonization, with demonstrated success for arthroplasty patients along with vascular and cardiothoracic surgical patients. The variety of surgical approaches and anatomic regions within spine surgery can limit the impact of analyses at the subspecialty level. Despite the success of MRSA nasal screening and decolonization in reducing SSI rates in other disciplines, the impact on spine surgery is less understood.
Source: The Spine Journal - Category: Orthopaedics Authors: Source Type: research