Abstract: The Efficacy of Negative Pressure Wound Therapy and Antibiotic Beads as Infection Prophylaxis in Post-Traumatic Lower Extremity Salvage

INTRODUCTION: Management of tibial fractures can be complicated by infection of internal fixation hardware, resulting in increased morbidity and amputation rate. When removal of infected internal hardware with external fixation is not possible, salvage of the lower extremity is attempted through debridement, antibiotics, and soft tissue coverage. The purpose of this study is to investigate salvage of lower extremities with retention of infected fixation hardware.