Vascular Graft Infections: a Decade’s Clinical Experience in Indian Population

Vascular graft infection with its morbidity and mortality has tormented the world of vascular reconstruction overlong. India despite carrying a sizable burden of patients requiring vascular reconstruction has minimal research on the subject. We attempted to chronicle clinical profiles, symptom variability, risk factors, prophylactic measures, and various therapeutic options extended to patients with vascular graft infection, in this medical record-based case series analysis, of a decade (years 2010–2020), of patients presenting with vascular graft infections. Statistical comparison was done with chi-square and Fisher’s exact probability test. A total of 70 patients presented with vascular graft infection, 92.9% men and 7.1% women (mean age of 58 SD 11.8 years). Diabetes and coronary artery disease were the commonest comorbid conditions (24.7% each). The most common site of infection was the groin, and femoropopliteal bypass graft was the most infected segment (48.5%). The average time interval from index surgery to presentation with infection was 308 days. Early graft infection was seen in 60% patients, with extra-cavitary graft infections manifesting earlier than others. Local symptoms with discharging sinuses and cellulitis were common clinical presentations. Staphylococcus aureus was the commonest organism isolated (31.4%). A total of 58.5% patients underwent graft explantation and 40% were managed conservatively. Incidence of infection in patients who underwent immediate post-operative re-intervention was statistically significant when compared with Bunt’s classification (P value < 0.05). The distribution of incidence of post-operative infection differed significantly across various sites and the type of graft material used (P value < 0.05). Prosthetic vascular grafts provide unparalleled benefit to a patient in maintenance of life and limb. Our Indian experience of a decade when summed up reflects that extra-cavitary graft infections express early and anatomical predisposition of the groin makes femoropopliteal segment the worst affected in VGI. Remote infections and re-interventions are hidden caveats of VGI. Apt to say that “Aegrescit medendo”—“the cure is worse than the disease”—holds good for vascular graft infections.