Antibiotic Prophylaxis in Orthopaedic Traumatology

It has been established that providing antibiotic prophylaxis after closed fracture fixation with implants or prosthetic devices has beneficial effects. However, the optimal duration of antibiotic prophylaxis after orthopaedic trauma surgery is not well-defined. Most studies comparing single-dose prophylaxis with multiple-dose prophylaxis have not shown beneficial effects of additional doses. Our proposed study is intended to further define the appropriate duration of antibiotic (cefazolin) administration for surgical prophylaxis in the treatment of closed fractures. We will randomly assigned patients into two groups, hopefully differentiated only by the duration of antibiotic administration (single dose vs. 24 hours). We will follow these patients until fracture healing and determine if there is a difference in the incidence of infection.