Effect of varying surface patterns on antibiotic elution from antibiotic-loaded bone cement.

In an effort to improve the antibiotic elution characteristics of the prosthesis of antibiotic-loaded acrylic cement, an in vitro study was conducted. Tobramycin-loaded bone cement blocks of three different surface patterns with different surface area-to-volume ratios were used. The elution of tobramycin over a 2-month period was investigated. There was a gradual decline in the tobramycin elution rate over time. The surface pattern with the increased surface area-to-volume ratio showed a significant increase in the tobramycin elution rate over the first week of the study. The surface pattern with ridges but no change in the surface area-to-volume ratio did not result in a statistically significant increase in the tobramycin elution rate.