The purpose of this study is to determine, in patients who undergo an elective colorectal resection through a midline laparotomy incision, whether the use of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) applied to the site of the laparotomy compared to standard care alone, reduces the incidence of surgical site infection (SSI) in the first 30 days postoperatively. The investigators hypothesize that the use of NPWT will reduce the rate of postoperative SSI, as well as decrease the need for Nursing Home Care for SSI, length of hospital stay and return visits related to SSI.
The proposed trial will be pragmatic in nature whereby the investigators are trying to simulate usual circumstances to inform their everyday clinical decisions on the utility of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT). A prospective randomized open label blind endpoint (PROBE) trial design was chosen. All patients scheduled to undergo elective colorectal resections (CRR) at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) will be identified at the time of a pre-operative clinic visit with one of the 13 surgeons performing CRR at their institution. Included patients will be randomized to receive either usual care or usual care plus NPWT. All patients will be followed for 30 post-operative days to identify the development of an SSI and other secondary outcomes. Given the nature of the intervention, the surgeon and patients cannot be blinded to the intervention. Outcome assessors and statisticians will be blinded to the patient's allocated group.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
300
Prevena™ Incision Management System (PIMS) (Kinetic Concepts Inc. (KCI), San Antonio, TX) is an incisional vacuum assisted closure (PIMS) device intended to manage the environment of surgical incisions that continue to drain following sutured or stapled closure by maintaining a closed environment and removing exudates via the application of negative pressure wound therapy The PIMS applies continuous pressure to the closed surgical site at 125 mm Hg and is attached to a 45 mL canister for collection of exudate.
Patients will receive pre-operative antibiotics consisting of 1g cefazolin (or in the case of an allergy, an alternative e.g. ciprofloxacin/vancomycin) and 500 mg metronidazole given intravenously within the 30 minute prior to beginning the operative procedure. In cases extending \> 4 hours, a second dose of each of the antibiotics will be administered. Hair at the operative site will be removed, if required, immediately prior to the skin incision using electric clippers. The abdomen will be prepped using 2% Chlorhexidiene solution (or 10% povidone if allergic). After closure of the skin, the surgical wound will be covered with a sterile adhesive dressing (Tegaderm), which will remain in place until the morning of post-operative day (POD)#2, unless saturated, in which case it is standard practice to change the dressing if the physician is in agreement. On POD#2, the surgical team will remove the initial dressing and daily dressing changes with standard gauze will be initiated.
London Health Sciences Centre - University Campus
London, Ontario, Canada
London Health Sciences Centre - Victoria Campus
London, Ontario, Canada
Postoperative Surgical Site Infection (SSI)
Postoperative surgical site infection (SSI), as defined by the following CDC (Centre for Disease Control) criteria: Infection occurring within the first 30 post-operative days with at least one of the following: 1. Purulent drainage from the incision 2. Organisms isolated from an aseptically obtained culture of fluid or tissue from the incision 3. At least one of the following signs/symptoms of infection * Pain or tenderness * Localized swelling * Redness * Heat AND incision is deliberately opened by a surgeon (unless incision is culture negative) 4. Diagnosis of SSI by the surgeon or attending physician
Time frame: 30 days following operation
Need for Home Nursing Care (Home Care) related to Surgical Site Infection (SSI)
The need for home care will be determined by the surgical team after the identification of an SSI, and will be recorded by the study team. The duration of home care requirements will be determined at the time of post-operative clinic visits, as the home care process requires ongoing written communication with the surgeon for the duration of therapy, and this communication is concurrently occurring at the time of clinic visits.
Time frame: Up to 60 days post-operatively to encompass the treatment period required for the SSI.
Length of Stay in Hospital
Time from surgery to discharge from hospital.
Time frame: Up to 60 days post-operatively to encompass the prolonged stay in hospital of some patients
Cost of Management of Surgical Site Infection (SSI)
The cost of each SSI will be determined using the hospital case-costing dataset for inpatient care, clinic visits, and emergency department visits, and the standardized time and materials costs available from the Community Care Access Centre for home care.
Time frame: Up to 60 days post-operatively to include the treatment period encompassed in the outpatient setting
Number of Return Visits Related to Surgical Site Infection
A return visit related to SSI will include any visit to the emergency department, outpatient surgical clinic, or requirement for admission to hospital that is deemed by the primary surgeon or study team to be due to a) signs or symptoms of SSI requiring assessment; b) development of an SSI requiring management; or c) ongoing care of a known SSI
Time frame: Up to 60 days post-operatively to include the treatment period encompassed in the outpatient setting
This platform is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional.