Randomized trial of shunt infection rates comparing intraoperative Vancomycin versus Gentamicin in ventriculoperitoneal shunt system preparation

Ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt is the mainstay of surgical management of patients with hydrocephalus. The insertion of ventriculoperitoneal shunt may be accompanied by many potentially life-threatening complications including shunt infection. Concerted efforts have been made to reduce shunt infection rates, including use of saline- antibiotic solutions containing antibiotics such as Gentamicin, mixture of Gentamicin and Vancomycin in shunt system preparation. We therefore set out to determine the infection rates following the use of intraoperative Gentamicin and Vancomycin in ventriculoperitoneal shunt system preparation and compare the infection rates. Therefore, a randomized single blind comparative study was carried out for a period of seventeen months, among 56 patients that presented to 2 tertiary health centers in Nigeria diagnosed of hydrocephalus. Patients were randomized into Vancomycin- and Gentamicin-shunt preparation groups. The outcome measure was postoperative shunt infection rates. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software (version) 21. Group comparisons were made using the Student's t-test for numerical variables, and chi-square test or fisher’s exact test for categorical variables. Statistical significance was inferred at p-value < 0.05. Fifty-six patients were included in the study. One patient was lost to follow-up in Vancomycin group. Another patient died in Gentamicin group of sudden death without the patient exhibiting symptoms of shunt infection leaving a total of 54 for analysis. All the patients included in the study were followed up for six months. Their mean ages were between 1688.5 ± 665.3 (days) for Vancomycin group and 10,222 ± 6635.8 (days) for Gentamicin group. There was male preponderance of 55.6% as against female of 44.4%. Majority of the hydrocephalus were of congenital cause accounting for 64.8%. There was one shunt infection in the Gentamicin group giving rise to an infection rate of 1.9% which was not statistically significant (P –value—0.313). The organism isolated was Pseudomonas species. Ventriculoperitoneal shunt infection rates can be reduced to the barest minimum if standard concentration of antibiotics is used to prepare the shunt hardware employing a standard surgical technique.