The Role of Single Positive Cultures in Presumed Aseptic Total Hip and Knee Revision Surgery—A Systematic Review of the Literature

Background: Prior to revision hip (THA) or knee arthroplasty (TKA), periprosthetic low-grade infection (PJI) should be ruled out. Despite advances in preoperative diagnosis, unsuspected positive cultures (UPCs) may occur in initially planned aseptic revisions. Particularly, single UPCs pose a diagno...

Verfasser: Schwarze, Jan
Möllenbeck, Burkhard H. M.
Gosheger, Georg
Pützler, Jan Frederik
Deventer, Niklas
Kalisch, Tobias
Schneider, Kristian Nikolaus
Klingebiel, Sebastian
Theil, Jan-Christoph
FB/Einrichtung:FB 05: Medizinische Fakultät
Dokumenttypen:Artikel
Medientypen:Text
Erscheinungsdatum:2023
Publikation in MIAMI:17.05.2023
Datum der letzten Änderung:17.05.2023
Angaben zur Ausgabe:[Electronic ed.]
Quelle:Diagnostics 13 (2023) 9, 1655, 1-10
Schlagwörter:periprosthetic joint infection; revision arthroplasty; aseptic revision; PJI; total knee revision; total hip revision; arthroplasty; unsuspected positive cultures; unexpected positive cultures
Fachgebiet (DDC):610: Medizin und Gesundheit
Lizenz:CC BY 4.0
Sprache:English
Förderung:Finanziert durch den Open-Access-Publikationsfonds der Westfälischen Wilhelms-Universität Münster (WWU Münster).
Format:PDF-Dokument
URN:urn:nbn:de:hbz:6-30039530983
Weitere Identifikatoren:DOI: 10.17879/30039532597
Permalink:https://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:hbz:6-30039530983
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Onlinezugriff:10.3390_diagnostics13091655.pdf

Background: Prior to revision hip (THA) or knee arthroplasty (TKA), periprosthetic low-grade infection (PJI) should be ruled out. Despite advances in preoperative diagnosis, unsuspected positive cultures (UPCs) may occur in initially planned aseptic revisions. Particularly, single UPCs pose a diagnostic and therapeutic dilemma, as their impact on outcome is unclear and recommendations are heterogeneous. This review investigates the frequency of single UPCs and their impact on implant survivorship. Methods: In July 2022, a comprehensive literature search was performed using PubMed and Cochrane Library search. In total, 197 articles were screened. Seven retrospective studies with a total of 5821 cases were able to be included in this review. Results: Based on the cases included, UPCs were found in 794/5821 cases (14%). In 530/794 cases (67%), the majority of the UPCs were single positive. The most commonly isolated pathogens were coagulase negative Staphylococci and Cutibacterium acnes. Five of seven studies reported no influence on revision- or infection-free survival following a single positive culture. In two studies, single UPCs following THA revision were correlated with subsequent re-revision for PJI. Conclusions: Single UPCs of a non-virulent pathogen following presumed aseptic TKA revision may be interpreted as contaminants. A single UPC following THA revision may be a risk factor for subsequent PJI. The role of systemic antibiotic treatment remains unclear, but it should be considered if other risk factors for PJI are present.