[Infectious complications, delayed wound healing and inflammatory syndromes as late complications of cardiovascular surgery].

Four-hundred and three patients were admitted to an internal medicine unit for late complications of cardiac or vascular surgery; 321 of these patients (80 per cent) had a total of 379 complications or intercurrent disease, 147 (40 per cent) of which were infections (71 cases), delayed healing of the operative wound (39 cases) or inflammatory syndromes (37 cases). Such complications are notable for their immediate or secondary severity, the diagnostic problems sometimes raised by their latency, their repercussions on the length of hospitalization and cost of surgery, and the thoughts they inspire concerning the minimal stay in hospital required after this type of surgery.