OBJECTIVE: The aim of this nationwide case-control study was to study the epidemiology and identify risk factors of deep sternal wound infections (DSWI) in Iceland. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Between 1997-2004, 1 650 adults underwent open cardiac surgery in Iceland. For every infected patient four control subjects were chosen (n =163), matched for time of operation. The groups were compared by multivariable logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Forty one patients (2.5%) developed DSWI, most often following CABG (76%). The most common pathogens were Staphylococcus aureus (39%) and coagulase-negative staphylococci (24%). All except two patients underwent debridement and rewiring of the sternum. Length of hospital stay was significantly longer in the DSWI group with a trend for increased hospital mortality and significantly greater 1-year mortality (17% vs. 5%, p =0.02). History of stroke (OR 5.12), peripheral arterial disease (OR 5), corticosteroid use (OR 4.25), smoking (OR 3.66) and re-operation for bleeding (OR 4.66) were the strongest independent predictors for DSWI. CONCLUSION: Incidence of DSWI in Iceland (2.5%) is comparable to other recently published studies, with similar risk factors and significantly reduced survival at one year following the infection.
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Steingrímsson et al. (2008) studied this question.