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Volume 32, Number 11—November 2026
Research
Microbial Etiology of Postoperative Spinal Fusion Infections and Factors Associated with Gram-Negative Infections, United States, 2021–2022
Molly Lindstrom, Benjamin W. Langworthy, Jonathan N. Sembrano, and Don Bambino Geno Tai
Table 1
Demographics and clinical characteristics of patients with spinal fusion surgical site infections in study of microbial etiology of postoperative spinal fusion infections and factors associated with gram-negative infections, United States, 2021–2022*
| Characteristic | All patients, N = 7,187 |
|---|---|
| Mean age, y (SD) |
61.67 (13.4) |
| Mean BMI (SD) |
32.26 (7.8) |
| Sex | |
| M | 3,297 (45.9) |
| F | 3,889 (54.1) |
| Unknown |
1 |
| Outpatient |
103 (1.4) |
| Mean duration of surgery, h (SD) |
3.86 (2.3) |
| Approach | |
| Anterior | 920 (13.5) |
| Posterior | 5,686 (83.7) |
| Both |
189 (2.8) |
| ASA class | |
| 1 | 40 (0.6) |
| 2 | 1,568 (23.1) |
| 3 | 4,649 (68.4) |
| 4 | 533 (7.9) |
| 5 |
3 (0.04) |
| Diabetes |
2,216 (32.6) |
| Wound class | |
| Clean | 6,574 (96.8) |
| Clean-contaminated | 135 (2.0) |
| Contaminated | 23 (0.3) |
| Dirty |
63 (0.9) |
| Spinal level | |
| Axis-atlas | 4 (0.1) |
| Axis-atlas/cervical | 60 (0.9) |
| Cervical | 1,367 (20.1) |
| Cervical/dorsal/ dorsolumbar | 300 (4.4) |
| Dorsal/dorsolumbar | 1,299 (19.1) |
| Lumbar/lumbosacral |
3,765 (55.4) |
| Trauma, yes |
349 (5.1) |
| Closure | |
| Intentionally left open | 65 (1.0) |
| Fully closed or partial |
6,728 (99.0) |
| Timing of infection, days from procedure, median (IQR) |
21 (14, 29) |
| Emergency |
521 (7.7) |
| Use of scope | 21 (0.3) |
*Values are no. (%) except as indicated. ASA, American Society of Anesthesiologists; BMI, body mass index, IQR, interquartile range.
Page created: September 16, 2026
Page updated: October 14, 2026
Page reviewed: October 14, 2026
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