Use of Antibiotics in Open Tibial Fractures

Abstract

Data concerning 1102 open fractures are presented with bacteriologic and antibiotic considerations analyzed in 363 open tibiae fractures treated in three prospective one-year studies during the period from 1970 to 1980. The highest infection rate was in open tibiae receiving no antibiotics (24%, 6 infections in 25 open tibial fracture wounds), and the lowest was in the group receiving a cephalosporin and an aminoglycoside (4.5%, 5 infections in 109 open tibial fracture wounds).