IN A PROOF-OF-CONCEPT STUDY WITH MICE, SCIENTISTS AT THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY SHOW THAT A NOVEL COATING THEY MADE WITH ANTIBIOTIC-RELEASING NANOFIBERS HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BETTER PREVENT AT LEAST SOME SERIOUS BACTERIAL INFECTIONS RELATED TO TOTAL JOINT REPLACEMENT SURGERY.
A Titanium Implant (Blue) Without A Nanofiber Coating In The Femur Of A Mouse. Bacteria Are Shown In Red And Responding Immune Cells In Yellow.
A report on the study, published online the week of Oct. 24 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was conducted on the rodents’ knee joints, but, the researchers say, the technology would have “broad applicability” in the use of orthopaedic prostheses, such as hip and knee total joint replacements, as well pacemakers, stents and other implantable medical devices. In contrast to other coatings in development, the researchers report the new material can release multiple antibiotics in a strategically timed way for an optimal effect.