Table 1.
Baseline patient characteristics.
| Cohort (n = 433) |
Local Antibiotics Group (n = 251) | No Local Antibiotics Group (n = 182) | p-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | ||
| Sex (male) | 318 (73.4) | 191 (76.1) | 127 (69.8) | 0.142 |
| Age (years): median (P25–P75) | 50.6 (36.3–62.0) | 50.0 (37.0–62.0) | 51.5 (33.0–63.0) | 0.750 |
| BMI (kg/m2): median (P25–P75) | 27.0 (23.3–30.4) | 27.7 (23.5–31.0) | 26.3 (23.1–29.7) | 0.068 |
| Smoker (yes) | 112 (25.9) | 56 (22.3) | 56 (30.8) | 0.047 * |
| Diabetes (yes) | 47 (10.9) | 28 |(11.2) | 19 (10.4) | 0.813 |
| Immunosuppressives | 17(3.9) | 9 (3.6) | 8 (4.4) | 0.668 |
| Renal function (eGFR) | 0.114 | |||
| Normal (≥90 mL/min/1.73 m2) | 310 (71.6) | 178 (70.9) | 132 (72.5) | |
| Impaired (<90 mL/min/1.73 m2) | 115 (26.6) | 71 (28.3) | 44 (24.2) | |
| Not determined | 8 (1.8) | 2 (0.8) | 6 (3.3) | |
| Fracture characteristics (Location) | ||||
| Humerus | 20 (4.6) | 11 (4.4) | 9 (4.9) | 0.783 |
| Forearm | 26 (6.0) | 16 (6.4) | 10 (5.5) | 0.704 |
| Femur | 94 (21.7) | 65 (25.9) | 29 (15.9) | 0.013 * |
| Tibia | 219 (50.6) | 130 (51.8) | 89 (48.9) | 0.552 |
| Tibia and fibula | 6 (1.4) | 6 (2.4) | 0 (0) | 0.042 * |
| Fibula | 13 (3.0) | 12 (4.8) | 1 (0.5) | 0.011 * |
| Pelvis | 26 (6.0) | 4 (1.6) | 22 (12.1) | <0.001 * |
| Clavicle | 6 (1.4) | 0 (0) | 6 (3.3) | 0.005 * |
| Tibia and talus | 1 (0.2) | 1 (0.4) | 0 (0) | 1.000 |
| Calcaneus | 11 (2.5) | 4 (1.6) | 7 (3.8) | 0.215 |
| Midfoot | 3 (0.7) | 1 (0.4) | 2 (1.1) | 0.575 |
| Foot (crush) | 5 (1.2) | 0 (0) | 5 (2.7) | 0.013 * |
| Sternum | 1 (0.2) | 0 (0) | 1 (0.5) | 0.420 |
| Patella | 2 (0.5) | 1 (0.4) | 1 (0.5) | 1.000 |
| Fracture healed at time of surgery | <0.001 * | |||
| Yes | 190 (43.9) | 163 (64.8) | 27 (14.8) | |
| No | 243 (56.1) | 88 (35.1) | 155 (85.2) | |
| Time to onset of infection (weeks): median (P25–P75) | 44.0 (6.0–356.0) | 125.0 (39.0–806.0) | 6.5 (3.0–38.0) | <0.001 * |
| Surgical approach | <0.001 * | |||
| DAIR | 139 (32.1) | 22 (8.8) | 117 (64.3) | <0.001 * |
| Exchange to new internal fixation | 24 (5.6) | 10 (4.0) | 14 (7.7) | 0.096 |
| Fixation removed | 95 (21.9) | 73 (29.1) | 22 (12.1) | <0.001 * |
| Exchange to external fixation | 68 (15.7) | 51 (20.3) | 17 (9.3) | 0.002 * |
| Internal fixation | 1 (0.2) | 0 (0) | 1 (0.5) | 0.420 |
| No fixation used | 106 (24.5) | 95 (37.8) | 11 (6.0) | <0.001 * |
| Soft tissue status | 0.012 * | |||
| Direct closure possible | 300 | 162 (64.5) | 138 (75.8) | |
| Direct closure not possible (SSG, local/free flap) |
133 | 89 (35.5) | 44 (24.2) | |
| Microbiology | ||||
| Monomicrobial | 199 (46.0) | 123 (49.0) | 76 (41.8) | 0.144 |
| Polymicrobial | 154 (35.6) | 65 (25.9) | 89 (48.9) | <0.001 * |
| Culture negative | 80 (18.5) | 63 (25.1) | 17 (9.3) | <0.001 * |
P25–P75: 25th and 75th percentile; DAIR: debridement, antibiotics and implant retention; eGFR: estimated glomerular filtration rate. eGFR was considered impaired when <90 mL/min. SSG: split skin graft; * statistically significant at p < 0.05 (in bold).