In Vitro Evaluations of the Effects on Chitosan Paste by the Derivatization of Chitosan

Complex musculoskeletal wounds with high rates of infection can be managed with local delivery systems and systemic antimicrobials. Chitosan has been shown to be biocompatible and biodegradable but exhibits bolus release kinetics. Trimethyl chitosan (TMC) has tailorable degradation properties, and poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate chitosan (PEGDAc) is cross-linked and exhibits enhanced swelling characteristics. This research investigated a combination of TMC and PEGDAc as an injectable local delivery system. Combination paste eluted active vancomycin and amikacin for 6 and 5 days, respectively, and was degraded after 14 days. Cytocompatibility with NIH3T3 fibroblast and MC3T3 pre-osteoblast cells was above viability standards in ISO 10993-5. Combination paste required 12% of a benchmark force to eject from standard 1 mL syringes. The combination adhered to muscle tissue and was easily removed by irrigation. These preliminary results indicate the combination of TMC and PEGDAc could be further developed for infection prevention