Can applied external fixators be sterilized for surgery? A prospective cohort study of orthopaedic trauma patients

摘要

Background: Temporary external fixators are often used to stabilize fractures when definitive fracture surgery must be delayed. Sometimes, external fixators are left in place during repeat operations, including definitive internal fixation of tibial pilon and tibial plateau fractures. It is unknown how well current surgical preparation sterilizes these devices, which become part of the surgical field. Our hypothesis was that our institution's standard surgical preparation creates a low rate of culture-positive environments on external fixators at the time of surgical skin incision.