Synthesis and characterization of ciprofloxacin-loaded biodegradable magnesium implants for the prevention of implant-associated infections

Thanks to developments in prophylactic antibiotics in recent decades, the risk of wound infection in orthopedic surgeries decreased significantly. Different local antibiotic delivery methods are employed to reduce hard and soft tissue-related infection. This research is aimed at studying the efficacy of a brand-new biodegradable, ciprofloxacin (CP)-loaded with various amounts of Gelatin (GE) (5 and 10 wt%), sealed the pores and cracks of magnesium oxide - titanium dioxide (MgO–TiO2) nanocomposite film fabricated by Micro-Arc Oxidation (MAO) process on the surface of pure Mg implant. The results indicated that both synthesized GE-CP coatings on the surface of MgO–TiO2 films are biocompatible and antibacterial (with rate of 99.99%) although the corrosion resistance of the coating containing 10 wt% of GE is more than doubled that of the composite coating comprising 5 wt% of GE, and the release of CP from MgO–TiO2/10 GE-CP coating was more slowly. It can be, therefore, concluded that magnesium (Mg) implants with this composite coating containing 10 wt% of GE could be potentially used for bone regeneration applications.