The URMC team retrospectively reviewed the medical records of more than 1,500 patients who received this novel treatment at Strong Memorial Hospital at URMC. In each of these cases, a dusting of vancomycin was used in addition to intravenous antibiotics prior to surgery.
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The researchers found a general infection rate of only 0.99 percent, compared to a national, general infection average of approximately 2.1 percent among 108,419 patients in the national database of the Scoliosis Research Society. In addition, a gram of vancomycin costs only about $4.27, which makes this method a cost-effective means for reducing the risk of post-operative infections.
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