Infectious complications and cost-effectiveness of open resuscitation in the surgical intensive care unit after cardiac surgery.

From July, 1982, to May, 1984, 2,412 patients underwent cardiac surgery. Open resuscitation through a midline sternotomy was performed in the surgical intensive care unit (SICU) 88 times in 64 patients one minute to 10 days after admission. There were 49 initial survivors; 31 patients had primary closure in the SICU (Group 1), and 18 patients had delayed closure (Group 2). In Group 1 there was 1 death. Wound infection developed in 2 of the 30 survivors--Escherichia coli in 1 and Staphylococcus epidermidis in 1. The latter required subsequent debridement. In Group 2 there were 8 survivors and no wound infections. Fifteen patients could not be resuscitated because of ventricular arrhythmia (13%), asystole (33%), cardiogenic shock (47%), and tamponade (7%). Only 2 of 38 patients, or 5%, experienced wound infections. This study demonstrates that open resuscitation in the SICU is a safe, rapid, and cost-effective procedure that will allow earlier intervention, diagnosis, and treatment. In no instance was death attributed to wound infection, and at our institution, this method resulted in cost savings of more than $1,000 per patient.