To explore the therapeutic effect of subcutaneous negative pressure drainage and absorbable suture in preventing postoperative complications of cranioplasty.

The clinical data of 175 cases of skull defect admitted and treated in Department of Neurosurgeryof the Affiliated Hospital of Binzhou Medical University from January 2012 to February 2018 were retrospectively analyzed.According to the different intraoperative treatment methods, 97 cases were treated with thread suture to the galea aponeurotica combined with general drainage(the general drainage group), and 78 cases were treated with absorbable suture to the galea aponeurotica combined with negative pressure drainage(the negative pressure drainage group). The galea aponeurotica were sutured intermittently with both silk thread and absorbable suture, and the drainage tube was placed outside the metal titanium plate under the skin, and removed after 48-72 hours.The postoperative complications of the two groups were compared.

The incidence rates of subcutaneous hemorrhage, knotting reaction, infection of incision in the negative pressure drainage group were 1.3%(1/78), 0.0%(0/78), and 0.0%(0/78), respectively, which were significantly lower than those in the average drainage group[11.3%(11/97), 20.6%(20/97), 7.2%(7/97)], the differences were statistically significant(χ²=6.85, 18.16, 4.13, all P<0.05).

The application of absorbable suture suturing galea aponeurotica and subcutaneous negative pressure drainage in skull repair can significantly reduce and prevent postoperative complications of cranioplasty.

Negative-pressure wound therapy; Drainage; Skull defect; Cranioplasty; Postoperative complications