RT Journal Article
T1 Culture Concordance in Different Sections of the Metatarsal Head: Interpretations of Microbiological Results
A1 Molines Barroso, Raúl Juan
A1 García Morales, Esther Alicia
A1 Sevillano Fernández, David
A1 García Álvarez, Yolanda
A1 Álvaro Afonso, Francisco Javier
A1 Lázaro Martínez, José Luis
AB Microbiological cultures of per-wound bone biopsies have shown a lack of correlation and a high rate of false-negative results when compared with bone biopsy cultures in diabetic foot osteomyelitis. The selection of samples from the area of active osteomyelitis, which contains a complete census of the microorganisms responsible for the infection, is essential to properly guide antimicrobial treatment. We aimed to comparatively evaluate the quantitative and qualitative cultures taken from different areas, in metatarsal heads resected for osteomyelitis. For this purpose, we consecutively selected 13 metatarsal heads from 12 outpatients with plantar ulcers admitted to our diabetic foot unit. Metatarsal heads were divided transversally into 3 portions: plantar (A), central (B), and dorsal (C), and the 39 resulting samples were cultured. Qualitative and quantitative microbiological analysis was performed, and the isolated species and bacterial load, total and species specific, were compared between the 3 metatarsal bone segments. The primary outcome of the study was the bacterial diversity detected in the different bone sections. Cultures were positive in 12 of the 13 included metatarsal heads (92%). A total of 34 organisms were isolated from all specimens. Ten of the 12 cultures (83%) were polymicrobial. Ten of the 13 metatarsal heads (77%) had identical microbiological results in each of the 3 bone sections. The largest number of microorganisms was found in the central section. The overall concordance between sections was 91%. The predominant microorganisms were coagulase-negative staphylococci (41%). Statistical differences were not found in the bioburden between sections (range 3.25-3.41 log10 colony-forming unit/g for all sections; P = .511). The results of our study suggest that microorganisms exhibit a high tendency to spread along the metatarsal bone and that the degree of progression along the bone is species dependent. The central portions of metatarsal bones tend to accumulate a higher diversity of species. Thus, we recommend this area of bone for targeted biopsy in patients with suspected osteomyelitis.
PB Sage Journals
SN 1534-7346
SN 1552-6941
YR 2021
FD 2021-04-28
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/109829
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/109829
LA eng
NO Molines-Barroso RJ, García-Morales E, Sevillano-Fernández D, García-Álvarez Y, Álvaro-Afonso FJ, Lázaro-Martínez JL. Culture Concordance in Different Sections of the Metatarsal Head: Interpretations of Microbiological Results. Int J Low Extrem Wounds. 2023 Jun;22(2):270-277.
DS Docta Complutense
RD 24 ene 2026