Surgical Field Bacterial Contamination in Primary Total Hip (THA) and Knee (TKA) Arthroplasty

Surgical Field Bacterial Contamination in Primary Hip and Knee Replacement Surgery

In Denmark, approximately 13,000 operations are carried out every year. Prosthetic infection is a very serious condition and despite extensive prophylactic measures, prosthetic infections appear in 1-2 percent of the operated patients.

It is difficult to diagnose prosthetic infection with the techniques applied so far and incorrect diagnosis might imply unnecessary reoperations as well as unnoticed infections might lead to prolonged pain and invalidity.

The purpose of this study is to examine the value of these three techniques applied as a supplement to the existing technology and on this basis to prepare an algorithm for the examination of joint prosthesis infection.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients who have been through an alloplastic operation in hip og knee.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients with cancer or a bilateral disease
• Former patients who have been through an operation with implants in hip or knee.
• Patients who might be infected in the joint due to operation in hip or knee.
• Lack of informed consent or inability to read/understand Danish