Development of a Reloadable Antimicrobial Pouch to Prevent Biofilm Implant-Related Infection
Abstract
This study addresses the focus area of antimicrobial resistance: development of novel and/or innovative interventions to … treat infections … focused on hardware-associated infections and biofilms. Many people suffer from broken bones. When a broken bone protrudes through the skin, it’s called an open fracture. This can happen, for example, to someone in a motorcycle accident, or in sports, like Paul George’s season-ending injury. Open fractures can also happen to Soldiers in a battlefield scenario; while running in a muddy environment, a Soldier may fall down a ravine and break open their leg. When a broken bone protrudes through the skin, there’s a good chance the bone will be contaminated with bacteria that live in the dirt. Bacterial cells in natural environments (like dirt) don’t live alone, they cluster together and live in what are called biofilms. When bacteria live together in biofilms, they are difficult to kill. Surgeons currently do not have access to a good antibiotic regimen that can kill bacteria that live in these biofilms. Infection can develop as a result, and in fact for more than 40 years, rates of open fracture infection have remained unchanged in our healthcare systems. In this study, we’ve proposed to test a new device that we’ve developed, which can continuously release antibiotics directly to a contaminated bone and thus kill biofilms that might be residing in the area. There is no other device like it on the market. We’ll assess the device in a sheep model of biofilm-related infection, and also perform necessary tests, such as confirming that the device is mechanically sound, in order to advance it through a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) submission. The long-term objective is to make this device available for surgeons to use in patients who suffer from open fractures and other implant-related infection scenarios.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Mar 10, 2021
- Source ID
- W81XWH2010384
Entities
People
- Dustin L Williams
Organizations
- United States Army
- University of Utah