Cefazolin prophylaxis in neurosurgery monitored by capillary electrophoresis.

Prophylactic use of antibiotics to prevent postoperative infections is a routine method in neurosurgery. Little is known about the period of effectiveness of antibiotics applied only for the purposes of operation. The actual concentration of cefazolin was determined in the serum, in the contents of wound drains, and in the cerebrospinal fluid in a 24-hour postoperative period after the administration of 1 g of cefazolin just prior to skin incision in 8 patients undergoing lumbar discectomy and 11 patients undergoing craniectomy.