Development of New Model for Evaluation of Antibacterial Therapy of Biofilm-Associated Vascular Graft Infections

Background: Vascular graft infections (VGI) are one of the most severe complications of aortic and vascular surgery. Perigraft bacterial colonization can develop a perigraft abscess or a systemic infection. Replacement of infected vascular grafts is associated with high mortality rates, especially in case of aortic grafts. The presence of an artificial prosthetic material leads to limitations of conventional antibacterial therapy due to biofilm formation and inaccessibility of adhered bacterial cells to the immune system. These limitations make the development of new approaches important for the evaluation of suitable antibacterial substances, their combinations, therapy dosing, and duration regimes.