Preparation of gentamicin-loaded electrospun coating on titanium implants and a study of their properties in vitro.

PURPOSE: Implant-related infections are disastrous complications in the clinic, and there are no effective therapies. In this preliminary study, gentamicin-loaded coating on titanium implants was prepared using the electrospinning technique, and some properties of the coating titanium implants were studied.

METHODS: We adopted the electrospinning technique to prepare gentamicin-coated titanium implants. The surface structure of the coating implants was observed using scanning electron microscope. An elution study was performed to determine the release behavior of the gentamicin from the coating. The antibacterial efficacy and quantitative analysis of the bacterial adhesion of Staphylococcus aureus were evaluated in vitro, and the cytotoxicity of the coated titanium implants on osteoblasts was investigated in vitro.

RESULTS: The morphology of the gentamicin-coated titanium implants exhibited nanofibers, and the release of gentamicin showed an initial gentamicin burst followed by a slow release. The gentamicin-coated titanium implants had a persistent antibacterial efficacy for 1 week and significantly reduced the adhesion of the Staphylococcus aureus compared with bare titanium implants in vitro. There was no cytotoxicity observed in vitro for the gentamicin-coated implants.

CONCLUSION: The gentamicin-coated titanium implants, which were prepared using an electrospinning technique, present many advantages and may be considered to prevent and treat the implant-related infections.