Abstrakt: |
Among 212 vascular prostheses collected in a vascular explant retrieval program, 50 exhibited one or more criteria of graft infection i.e., (a) clinical evidence of graft infection, (b) positive bacteriological analyses of the graft, and (c) presence at the blood-prosthetic interface of characterized microorganisms. Whereas each of these criteria was noted respectively in 25, 26, and 20 cases, there was no complete overlapping among the three criteria, but their combination led us to consider 50 cases of infected vascular grafts among the 212 collected. These results, and the occurrence in two cases among six investigations for viral infection, suggest that extensive bacteriological investigations of vascular explants should be included in an implant retrieval program, and that infection may represent a high risk in graft failure. |