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To assess the effectiveness of calcium phosphate as a delivery system of teicoplanin, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis was induced in 36 rabbits. Osteomyelitis was induced by inoculating 10 cfu of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolate into a 2-mm hole at the upper 1/3 of the femur for 3 weeks, when all animals had reoperations, and calcium phosphate cement with 3% teicoplanin was implanted. Animals were divided into six groups of six animals each, sacrificed at Weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, respectively, after implantation. One rabbit in each group was used as a control. Substantial clinical improvement of the rabbits was observed after implantation, accompanied with sterile cultures of bone after the second week of treatment. Throughout the same period, 10 to 10 cfu/g of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolate was cultured from the control samples. Bacterial eradication signified a considerable decrease of the total histologic scores of osteomyelitis compared with controls, accompanied with newly growing host bone. The calcium phosphate with teicoplanin delivery system seems promising for treatment of bone infection attributable to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. In addition, this mixture allows filling of bone defects by new host bone.
Egan et al. (Wed,) studied this question.