MICROBIOLOGICAL MONITORING OF AORTIC-ANEURYSM SAC CONTENTS DURING ABDOMINAL ANEURYSMECTOMY - RESULTS IN 176 PATIENTS AND REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

To investigate the clinical significance of intraoperative cultures, a neurysmal thrombus was cultured in 176 patients with clinically non su spected infected abdominal aortic aneurysm. The incidence of positive cultures was 14.2% and 88% of the microorganisms were Gram-positive. D ifferences between elective and urgent reconstruction were not signifi cant. During follow-up, there were no cases of graft infection in eith er group. Review of the literature shows a positive culture rate of 19 % in a series of 1867 patients. 93% Of the microorganisms are Gramposi tive and 78% are considered as contaminants. The incidence of graft in fection is 1.99% in the group with positive culture and 0.7% in the se ries with negative culture (P = 0.06). It is concluded that the clinic al significance of routine cultures in clinically non supected infecte d aortic aneurysms is negligible.