IntroductionMediastinitis is one of the most feared complications of cardiac surgery. It's incidence ranges from 0.9 to 5% and sometimes up to 20%. It is characterized by severe infection, retrosternal abscess, osteomyelitis, and gross sternal dehiscence with high mortality. Material and methodsPatients undergoing median sternotomy for cardiac surgery during a ten years period at the Pemex Hospital in Mexico were reviewed. The variables age, sex, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, body mass index, primary surgery, renal involvement, previous dialysis, type of sternal closure, pre-surgical hospital stay, result of cultures and mortality were studied. ResultsOf 2,242 sternotomies, 33 cases were included. There was an average of 3 cases per year. 24 men and 9 women, the majority between 71 and 80years old, 25 diabetic and 24 hypertensives. 45.3% with normal weight or overweight and 54.5% with grade I-II obesity. 27 had a history of ischemia and 6 had a history of simple valve surgery or mixed procedure, 22.2% had a history of urgent reexploration for bleeding. 44.4% of the patients were nephropaths, 2 on hemodialysis.There were two sternal closure techniques, group1 with simple stitches and group2 with Hemi-Robicsek. Type1 was used in 1499 patients, with 1.8% dehiscence, type2 in 743 patients, with 0.6% dehiscence. ConclusionsPost-sternotomy devastating mediastinal infections are increasingly rare in our hospital. A strict adherence to the technique, the sternal closure that we call Hemi-Robicsek, as well as the early detection of dehiscence for resuturing has led us to zero cases of mediastinitis.