Prophylactic Local Antibiotics for Tissue Expansion (PLATE) Improve Breast Reconstruction Outcomes

Background: Infection following tissue expander (TE) breast reconstruction is frequent and impactful. Preliminary reports demonstrate value of local antibiotic delivery for implant salvage and prophylactic potential. This article is a multiinstitutional retrospective study using surgeon-crafted tobramycin-vancomycin polymethyl methacrylate plates (prophylactic local antibiotics for tissue expansion [PLATE]) during TE implantation for infection prophylaxis. The authors hypothesized that the intervention would be associated with fewer infections compared with historical practice. Methods: In 2021, surgeons at 3 institutions began independently offering PLATE for primary TE breast reconstructions. After independent institutional review board approvals, data were retrospectively collected for PLATE subjects and preintervention cohorts of equivalent sizes. Subjects were followed up for 7 months, or to second-stage removal. The primary outcome—complication requiring readmission/reoperation—was compared between aggregated cohorts. Analysis included logistic modeling and Kaplan-Meyer survival. Results: The aggregate sample included 183 intervention subjects (292 breasts) and 183 controls (301 breasts), each with 5 ± 2-month follow-up. Overall, complications were significantly less frequent with PLATE (13.1% versus 21.9%; P < 0.01). This was driven by significantly fewer infections (4.8% versus 12.6%; P < 0.01) with no difference in rates of tissue necrosis, seroma, or other complications ( P > 0.05). In multivariable regression, the intervention was associated with significantly reduced odds of any complication (OR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.3 to 0.93) and infection (OR, 0.22; 95% CI, 0.08 to 0.50). Kaplan-Meyer curves demonstrated significant longitudinal reduction in complication and infection ( P < 0.01) without notable rebound throughout dissipation of the antibiotic eluent. Conclusions: Prophylactic use of intraoperatively crafted PLATE during TE implantation was associated with significant infection reduction without increase in local or systemic complications. This reproducible tool may be highly valuable in alloplastic breast reconstruction. CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, III.