Polylactic-co-glycolic acid microspheres added to fixative cements and its role on bone infected architecture

Joint prostheses are an essential element to improve quality of life. However, prostheses may fail due to several factors, including the most frequent cause, Staphylococcus aureus infection. The identification of new fixing bone cements with less reactivity on bone tissue and an adequate response to infection remains a primary challenge. The aim of this study is to evaluate the response of bone tissue in rabbits after introduction of a hydroxyapatite-coated titanium rod with a commercial fixative cement (Palacos®) compared to a modified experimental cement (EC) containing polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) microspheres in the presence or absence of contaminating germs. This study used 20 New Zealand rabbits which were divided into four groups (n = 5) depending on the presence or absence of S. aureus and the use of commercial (Palacos®) or EC. A histological method, based on bone architecture damage, was proposed to evaluate from 1 to 9 the histological results and the response of the infected tissue. The macrophage response was also evaluated using monoclonal antibody RAM-11. The study showed better bone conservation with the use of EC with PLGA microspheres against the Palacos® commercial cement, including the noncontaminated and contaminated groups. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B: Applied Biomaterials published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater 107B:2517-2526, 2019.