• Paulo Valdeci Worm, Guilherme Finger, Brasil Albert Vincent Berthier AVB Department of Neurological Surgery, Hospital São José, Complexo Hospitalar Santa Casa de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul,, and Alisson Roberto Teles.
• Department of Neurological Surgery, Hospital São José, Complexo Hospitalar Santa Casa de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; Neurosurgery Department of Cristo Redentor Hospital, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Electronic address: paulo.worm@ufrgs.br.
• World Neurosurg. 2019 Jun 1; 126: e580-e585.

BackgroundSpine surgeries performed via the posterior approach have a higher infection rate. Several theories have been proposed, including poor hygienic condition of bed sheets and traumatized muscle associated with supine position promoting circulatory impairment. We investigated the influence of supine position on the rate of deep wound infection after spine surgery by the posterior approach.MethodsA total of 106 patients were randomly divided into 2 groups: lateral decubitus only versus dorsal and lateral decubitus. Patient follow-up after hospital discharge was performed at 30, 60, 180, and 360 days. Deep wound infection was diagnosed according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria.ResultsPatient sample was mainly composed of patients with neoplastic disease and patients with trauma. Postoperative wound infection developed in 12 cases (11.3%), and Streptococcus aureus was the most common pathogen. Incidence of postsurgical deep wound infection was significantly greater in the control group (P = 0.004).ConclusionsSupine position was significantly correlated with higher rates of wound infection among patients who underwent spine surgery by the posterior approach. Avoidance of supine position may represent a modifiable risk factor to diminish postoperative spine infection rates.Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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