Table 1_16S rRNA sequencing and conventional culture provide complementary information in hospitalized patients with chronic lower-limb wounds.docx

We compared baseline wound microbiota assessed by 16S rRNA sequencing and conventional culture in 62 hospitalized adults with chronic lower-limb wounds and examined associations with subsequent length of stay. Sequencing detected a mean of 11.62 taxa per sample versus 2.24 by culture, with an overall concordance of 51.35%.

In sequencing-based analyses, alpha diversity was not associated with length of stay, whereas beta diversity differed significantly according to hospitalization duration (PERMANOVA, R² = 0.030, p = 0.005), and six genera were associated with length of stay. Conventional culture showed no significant association with length of stay. No significant associations were found between sequencing-derived baseline microbiota and wound thermal parameters or 12-week healing.