Table 2.
Diagnostic sensitivity under ongoing empiric antibiotic therapy.
| Infection Subgroup | All Three Procedures | Blood Cultures | Intraoperative Specimens | CT-Guided Biopsies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SD with TAT | 53/53 (100%) | 35/53 (66.0%) | 43/53 (81.1%) | 11/22 (50%) |
| SD with ongoing EAT | 77/89 (86.5%) | 56/89 (62.9%) | 60/89 (67.4%) | 17/28 (66.7%) |
| p-value * | 0.004 | 0.722 | 0.084 | 0.568 |
| ISEE with TAT | 15/15 (100%) | 7/15 (46.7%) | 13/15 (86.7%) | 4/5 (80%) |
| ISEE with ongoing EAT | 47/51 (92.2%) | 21/51 (41.2%) | 46/51 (90.2%) | 7/15 (46.7%) |
| p-value * | 0.567 | 0.771 | 0.653 | 0.319 |
ISEE: isolated spinal epidural empyema, SD: spondylodiscitis, CT: computer tomography, EAT: empiric antibiotic therapy, TAT: targeted antibiotic therapy, *: Fisher exact test. Bold values are significant results (p < 0.05) as indicated in the methods.