Coating of bone implants with silica, hyperbranched polyethyleneimine, and gentamicin prevents development of osteomyelitis in a porcine model

The use of bone implants and prostheses has contributed to a revolution in modern medicine; however, in the beginning, not much was asked from the implant and prosthetic materials per se . Therefore, the next gamechanger in orthopedic research will come from new material designs which for instance can aid in prevention of implant-associated bone infections. Here, we describe the development of a new sol-gel coating technique that can deliver an efficient antimicrobial surface coating on orthopedic implants. Gentamicin was stocked in a novel nanocomposite xerogel made from silica and hyperbranched polyethyleneimine. The xerogel was anchored inside a porous surface made by coating of bone implants with titanium microspheres. Thereby, only the small watersoluble gentamicin molecules diffused in an aqueous environment, i.e., just after surgical insertion and leaving behind a titanium scaffold for osseointegration. The novel xerogel coating prevented development of severe Staphylococcus aureus induced osteomyelitis in a porcine model, which untreated, replicated the pathology seen in stage 3A on the Cierny-Mader classification system for osteomyelitis in adults.

Automated summary

The use of bone implants and prostheses has revolutionized modern medicine. The development of new material designs, such as the sol-gel coating technique described in this study, has the potential to prevent implant-associated bone infections and represent a gamechanger in orthopedic research.