Chronic Osteomyelitis

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Abstract
Certain factors affect the success or failure of surgical treatment of chronic osteomyelitis of the major bones of the extremities and the pelvic and shoulder girdles. This study included 186 patients with 217 surgical procedures. Follow-up periods varied from 4 to 14 years. Two important factors affected success: resistance of Staphylococcus aureus to penicillin G potassium or penicillin G sodium and duration of infection. Either of these factors alone did not mitigate against a successful result but when both were present in an etiologic group, such as chronic osteomyelitis in a fracture with union, failure was more frequent than success. Other factors associated with failure, such as scarred soft tissues and bony sclerosis, are a reflection of prolonged disease.