Long-Term Oral Antibiotic Therapy Improves Outcomes After Prosthetic Joint Infection

Abstract

Prosthetic joint infections are uncommon (following total joint arthroplasty, risk is about 1%), but they can be devastating and very difficult to treat. Orthopedists and infectious disease consultants sometimes recommend prolonged oral antibiotics after the standard treatment of joint irrigation, one-stage or two-stage surgery, and a 2- to 6-week postoperative course of intravenous antibiotics. However, much of the data supporting …