Table 1 Prospectively assessed variables

Patients’ general descriptive characteristics: age, sex, body mass index, comorbidities, anticoagulation, known immunosuppression (diabetes mellitus, renal dialysis, cirrhosis, pregnancy, iatrogenic immunosuppression, untreated human immunodeficiency virus [HIV] infection, agranulocytosis, active cancer), American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status classification, Nutritional Risk Screening (NRS 2002), neck disability index (NDI), or Oswestry low back disability index (ODI)

Patients’ spine surgery-specific baseline data: number and type of surgeries for the actual problem; agent, dose, and duration of presurgical antibiotic therapy; agent and duration of perioperative prophylaxis during debridement; cell count (absolute number and percentage of leukocytes); initial serum C-reactive protein (CRP) level; presence of initial bacteremia; presence of vertebral osteomyelitis; and presence and type spinal implants. Spine surgery data: anatomical localization of surgery, type of surgery, microbiological results, and histology (if applicable)

Treatment and outcome: number of surgeries to treat infection; total duration of antibiotic therapy; duration, agent, and dose of intravenous and oral antibiotic therapy; intraoperative vancomycin powder; wound-healing problems; presence and duration of vacuum-assisted negative pressure therapy; adverse events; clinical or and microbiological recurrence; date and reasons for rehospitalization and retreatment; follow-up data; fatalities; Nutritional Risk Screening (NRS 2002); neck disability index (NDI); or Oswestry low back disability index (ODI)

Administrative data: total hospitalization and outpatient costs, duration of hospital stay, duration of sick leave, duration of inpatient rehabilitation

One or two intraoperative bone and soft tissue samples for the biobank at Balgrist campus