Age-Related Microbiologic Trends in Periprosthetic Joint Infection of the Knee: Increased Rates of Atypical Pathogens With Increasing Age.

Julian Wier, Pranit Kumaran, Sahil S Telang, Jay R Lieberman, Nathanael D Heckmann

Abstract read

In one paragraph

Article in Arthroplasty today, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

0citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Julian WierDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Pranit KumaranDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Sahil S TelangDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Jay R LiebermanDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Nathanael D HeckmannDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) after total knee arthroplasty is a morbid complication, particularly in higher complexity patients and atypical infections. There is emerging evidence that age may influence both outcomes and what bacteria are isolated during PJI care. This study sought to identify how microbiological patterns vary across patient age during revision arthroplasty for PJI of the knee. Methods: A large database was queried from 2015 to 2023 for adult patients undergoing antibiotic spacer placement for knee PJI. Microbiology data were extracted from synovial and tissue cultures obtained during the hospital admission and grouped into skin flora, enteric, and atypical/hospital-acquired organisms. The change in rates of detecting specific infective organisms by age group (<60, 60-69, 70-79, ≥80) was assessed via linear regression. The microbiological profiles were then compared via chi-squared testing across age groups. Results: A total of 6796 patients with microbiological data were identified. PJIs due to skin flora decreased with increasing age (<60: 30.45% vs ≥80: 18.68%, R Conclusions: Enteric and atypical/hospital-acquired pathogens are more commonly isolated among older adults undergoing surgery for knee PJI. These findings highlight age as an important and understudied factor associated with distinct infective organisms within PJI care.

Indexed as

Age-related trendsAtypical pathogensEnteric organismsHospital-acquired infectionMicrobiologic trendsPeriprosthetic joint infection

Identifiers

PMID42058461

DOI10.1016/j.artd.2026.102021

PMCPMC13123490

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY-NC-ND

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.