There is a current need for the localised delivery of antibiotics in order to treat implant-based bacterial infections. Existing treatments use non-resorbable materials such as poly(methyl methacrylate) beads loaded with antibiotics; unfortunately, as they are not resorbable, these beads require secondary surgery for removal. Calcium phosphate cements have considerable potential for the localised delivery of drugs since they can be resorbed to some extent within the body, eliminating the need for a secondary surgical procedure. Therefore, in this study, the efficacy of both hydroxyapatite and brushite cements in the delivery of silver ions has been investigated. The activity of the Ag(+) released from the cements was assessed against the growth of both Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis; the brushite cement exhibited excellent antibacterial properties and also showed an increase in compressive strength of over 30%. In this study we have found that with a few changes in Ag(+) concentration it should be possible to produce a fully resorbable bone replacement material that is combined with an antibacterial scaffold with controlled release over a period of time, which is likely to inhibit bacterial infections associated with implantation procedures.
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