Affordable Irrigation-Drainage System for Early Postoperative Adhesion and Surgical Site Infection Prophylaxis in Posterior Lumbar Surgery: A Technical Note

There has been a significant surge in the number of operations in the field of lumbar spine surgery worldwide in the past few years. Despite the recent endoscopic advances in spine surgery, open posterior surgery is often a method of choice. During posterolateral approaches, deep and extensive subperiosteal dissection of the paravertebral muscles may need to be performed, which may cause tissue necrosis, putting the deep layers at risk for infection. Other factors causing surgical site infections (SSIs) include diabetes mellitus, obesity, low serum albumin levels, renal and hepatic insufficiency. Moreover, certain pathologies, such as spondylodiscitis, may benefit from the application of antiseptic solutions for topical surgical site irrigation. In this technical note, we present an original low-budget technique using a two-way Foley catheter, which is available in every operating room, to facilitate the simultaneous irrigation and drainage of the operative site.