Brief report: biomarkers of aortic vascular prosthetic graft infection in a porcine model with Staphylococcus aureus

• Published in: European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases Vol. 29; no. 11; pp. 1453 - 1456
• Main Authors: Langerhuus, S. N, Tønnesen, E. K, Jensen, K. H, Damgaard, B. M, Heegaard, P. M. H, Halekoh, U, Lauridsen, C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Berlin/Heidelberg : Springer-Verlag 01-11-2010; Springer-Verlag; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Animals; Aorta - microbiology; Aorta - surgery; Bacterial diseases; Biological and medical sciences; Biomarkers; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Blood Vessel Prosthesis - adverse effects; Blood Vessel Prosthesis - microbiology; Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation; Brief Report; C-Reactive Protein - analysis; CD4-CD8 Ratio; Disease Models, Animal; Fibrinogen - analysis; Flow Cytometry; Human bacterial diseases; Infectious diseases; Internal Medicine; Leukocytes - physiology; Lymphocytes; Medical Microbiology; Medical sciences; Prosthesis-Related Infections - diagnosis; Prosthesis-Related Infections - microbiology; Random Allocation; Staphylococcal Infections - diagnosis; Staphylococcal Infections - microbiology; Staphylococcal infections, streptococcal infections, pneumococcal infections; Staphylococcus aureus; Staphylococcus aureus - pathogenicity; Swine; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - analysis; Major Histocompatibility Complex; Porcine Model; High Group; Buprenorphine; Plasma Fibrinogen; Microbiology; Prosthesis; Biological marker; Pig; Infection; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Blood vessel; Bacteriosis; Bacteria; Micrococcales; Aorta; Graft; Micrococcaceae; Models; Artiodactyla; Staphylococcal infection; Ungulata; Staphylococcus aureus
• ISSN: 0934-9723; 1435-4373
• DOI: 10.1007/s10096-010-1008-x

Aortic vascular prosthetic graft infection (AVPGI) with Staphylococcus aureus is a feared post-operative complication. This study was conducted to evaluate the clinical signs and potential biomarkers of infection in a porcine AVPGI model. The biomarkers evaluated were: C-reactive protein (CRP), fibrinogen, white blood cells (WBC), major histocompatibility complex II (MHC II) density, lymphocyte CD4:CD8 ratio and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) in vitro responsiveness. Sixteen pigs were included in the study, and randomly assigned into four groups (n = 4): “SHAM” pigs had their infra-renal aorta exposed by laparotomy; “CLEAN” pigs had an aortic graft inserted; “LOW” and “HIGH” pigs had an aortic graft inserted and, subsequently, S. aureus were inoculated on the graft material (5 × 10⁴ colony-forming units [CFU] and 1 × 10⁶ CFU, respectively). Biomarkers were evaluated prior to surgery and on day 2, 5, 7, and 14 post-operatively in blood samples. Of all biomarkers evaluated, CRP was superior for diagnosing S. aureus AVPGI in pigs, with a sensitivity of 0.86 and a specificity of 0.75.