NYU Langone physicians have developed a new method of incision closures for scoliosis surgeries, which decreases the possible rate of infection. The Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics published the study.
The study looked at 76 charts of patients, eight to 25 years of age, with non-idiopathic scoliosis and who had posterior spinal fusion surgery. Thirty-four of these patients experienced the multilayered flap method, while 43 percent underwent the traditional technique.
Here are five notes about the method:
1. Using a multilayered flap closure, surgeons can close several layers of muscle and fascia while retaining blood supply.
2. This method gets rid of empty space around the spinal hardware and fusions sites where infections often establish.
3. Researchers found that the technique also separates surgical hardware and bone grafts from the skin's surface.
4. About 19 percent of the traditional method patients experienced wound complications, while 0 percent of the multilayered flap method patients experienced complications.
5. NYU Langone has used this new multilayered flap method since 2009.