Treatment of deep wound infections after spinal fusion with a vacuum-assisted device in patients with spinal cord injury.

Postoperative wound infection is a severe complication after spinal instrumentation, especially in a patient with spinal injury. We used vacuum-assisted wound closure (VAC) in two patients with spinal cord injury, who presented deep wound infection after spinal instrumentation and were treated with an aggressive irrigation and debridement procedure. Three and four weeks after VAC application, the hardware was completely covered by granulation tissue and a secondary closure was undertaken. No significant complications were observed. Six months after secondary closure, the wounds remained healed, no signs of instrumentation loosening, haloing or lysis around the instrumentation were observed, and patients had completed their rehabilitation program and were discharged from hospital. Vacuum assisted wound closure appears as an excellent option in the treatment of deep wound infections after spinal instrumentation in patients with spinal cord injury.