The utility of portable negative pressure wound therapy in the management of prosthetic dialysis arteriovenous graft infection

Abstract

The management of prosthetic dialysis arteriovenous graft infection comprises antibiotic treatment and total or partial excision of infected grafts for infectious source control. Partial excision with graft bypass is an important graft preservation strategy for localized infection but carries a higher reinfection risk. Here, we report a case of prosthetic graft infection that was successfully treated with partial excision, a graft bypass procedure, and a portable negative pressure wound therapy system, PICO, applied to the open wound postoperatively. The combined approach may be a useful strategy that decreases reinfection risk, shortens the length of hospital stay, and preserves graft patency.