Effect of vacuum-assisted closure technique on median sternotomy wound infection after cardiac surgery

Abstract

Objective To study the effect of vacuum-assisted closure technique on median sternotomy wound infection after cardiac surgery. Methods A total of 100 patients with median sternotomy wound infection after cardiac surgery in our hospital from May 2015 to May 2018 were randomly divided into observation group (50 cases) and control group (50 cases). The control group was only given conventional treatment, while the observation group was treated with vacuum-assisted closure technique on the basis. After treatment, the serum levels of inflammatory factors, pain score (VAS), general incision status, and complications were used as the evaluation criteria. Results Before treatment, there were no statistically significant differences in serum inflammatory factors and VAS score between the two groups (P>0.05). After treatment, the levels of serum inflammatory factors, VAS score, and the rate of complications in the observation group were lower than those in the control group, and the incision situation was also better than that in the control group, with statistically significant differences (P<0.05). Conclusion The application of vacuum-assisted closure technique in the treatment of median sternotomy wound infection after cardiac surgery can obviously reduce the pain, reduce the occurrence of complications, and accelerate the rehabilitation of patients, with value of popularization and application. Key words: Vacuum-assisted closure technique; Cardiac surgery; Median sternotomy wound infection