Novel strategies for aminoglycoside antibiotic delivery in skeletal tissues - a review

This paper reviews recent advances concerning antibiotic-loaded microparticles application in osteomyelitis treatment. We discuss different methods utilized for microparticles' preparation, i.e. double emulsification, simple emulsification and spray drying. Materials comprised of sphere-shaped matrices are also presented. We point out that the most commonly used microsphere-building components are biodegrad¬able aliphatic polyesters such as poly(lactide-co-glicolide) PLGA, poly(sebacic-ricinoleic-ester-anhydride) P(SA-RA) and poly(lactic-co-hydroxymethyl glycolic acid) PLHMGA. Biopolymers like gelatin, starch or chitosan are also applied as antibiotic carriers. Relationship between preparation method, type of material and its crosslinking degree, microparticles' immobilization steps and the amount of loaded antibiotic are reported as the main factors controlling release rate of drugs in osteomyelitis treatment. And finally, several approaches to produce injectable formulations as well as implantable three dimensional scaffolds with the use of microparticles are described. All in all, this proves that antibiotic-loaded microspheres are a versatile form of biomaterials in osteomyelitis therapy