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Microwave sterilization of femoral head allograft
Robert A Dunsmuir1, Grace Gallacher
1Department of Orthopaedics, Southern General Hospital, Glasgow, United Kingdom. Robert.dunsmuir@leedsth.nhs.uk
Abstract:
The potential shortage of allograft bone has led to the need to investigate other sources of bone for allografts. Some allograft bone donated from primary total hip arthroplasty recipients must be discarded or treated to become usable as a result of bacterial contamination. Femoral head allografts were contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis. A domestic microwave oven was used. The contaminated bone was exposed to microwave irradiation for different time periods. The samples were then cultured to attempt to grow the two bacterial species. The contaminated bone samples failed to grow any organisms after 2 min of exposure to microwave irradiation. This study shows that sterilization of femoral head allografts contaminated with S. aureus and B. subtilis can be achieved with microwave irradiation in a domestic microwave oven. This method of sterilization of bone allografts is cheap, easily used, and an effective way to process contaminated bone.
Insights
Microwave irradiation effectively sterilizes contaminated bone allografts. This cost-effective method using a domestic microwave oven eliminates bacteria like Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis after just two minutes, making more bone available for transplantation.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Infectious Disease Control
- Surgical Innovation
Background:
- Allograft bone is crucial for bone grafting procedures.
- Bacterial contamination can render donated allografts unusable, leading to significant waste.
- Alternative sterilization methods are needed to address the shortage of viable allograft bone.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of microwave irradiation as a sterilization method for bacterial contaminated femoral head allografts.
- To determine the optimal microwave exposure time for eliminating common bacterial contaminants.
- To assess the feasibility of using a domestic microwave oven for allograft bone sterilization.
Main Methods:
- Femoral head allografts were intentionally contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis.
- Contaminated bone samples were subjected to microwave irradiation using a domestic microwave oven for varying durations.
- Post-irradiation, bone samples were cultured to assess bacterial viability and confirm sterilization.
Main Results:
- Microwave irradiation effectively eliminated both Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis from contaminated bone samples.
- Complete sterilization was achieved after a microwave exposure of just 2 minutes.
- No viable bacterial organisms were recovered from the irradiated bone samples.
Conclusions:
- Domestic microwave irradiation is a highly effective, rapid, and inexpensive method for sterilizing bacterial contaminated bone allografts.
- This technique offers a practical solution to reduce the discard rate of potentially usable allograft bone.
- Microwave sterilization presents a promising approach to increase the availability of safe bone allografts for surgical applications.
