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World J Orthop. Feb 18, 2023; 14(2): 42-54
Published online Feb 18, 2023. doi: 10.5312/wjo.v14.i2.42
Diagnosis and treatment of chronic osteomyelitis based on nanomaterials
Ming Zeng, Zheng Xu, Zhen-Qi Song, Jie-Xiao Li, Zhong-Wen Tang, Sheng Xiao, Jie Wen
Ming Zeng, Zheng Xu, Zhen-Qi Song, Jie-Xiao Li, Zhong-Wen Tang, Sheng Xiao, Jie Wen, Department of Pediatric Orthopedics, Hunan Provincial People’s Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, China
Author contributions: Zeng M and Xu Z contribute equally to this study, they share co-first author; Xu Z wrote the paper; Zeng M and Li J did the literature review; Tang ZW and Song ZQ did the data analysis; Xiao S conceived and coordinated the study; Wen J revised the paper; and all authors reviewed the results and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Supported by the Science project of Hunan Provincial Health Commission, No. 202204073347.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jie Wen, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Pediatric Orthopedics, Hunan Provincial People’s Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hunan Normal University, No. 61 West Jiefang Road, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, China. cashwj@qq.com
Received: October 9, 2022
Peer-review started: October 9, 2022
First decision: November 22, 2022
Revised: December 1, 2022
Accepted: January 17, 2023
Article in press: January 17, 2023
Published online: February 18, 2023
Abstract

Chronic osteomyelitis is a painful and serious disease caused by infected surgical prostheses or infected fractures. Traditional treatment includes surgical debridement followed by prolonged systemic antibiotics. However, excessive antibiotic use has been inducing rapid emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria worldwide. Additionally, it is difficult for antibiotics to penetrate internal sites of infection such as bone, thus limiting their efficacy. New approaches to treat chronic osteomyelitis remain a major challenge for orthopedic surgeons. Luckily, the development of nanotechnology has brought new antimicrobial options with high specificity to infection sites, offering a possible way to address these challenges. Substantial progress has been made in constructing antibacterial nanomaterials for treatment of chronic osteomyelitis. Here, we review some current strategies for treatment of chronic osteomyelitis and their underlying mechanisms.

Keywords: Osteomyelitis, Nanomaterials, Infectious disease, Drug delivery

Core Tip: Chronic osteomyelitis is a painful and serious disease caused by infected surgical prostheses or infected fractures. Traditional treatment includes surgical debridement followed by prolonged systemic antibiotics treatment. But as antibiotics is difficult to penetrate into the internal infection areas of bone, thus limiting the efficacy of systemic antibiotic therapy, new therapeutic approach to treat this disease remains a major challenge for orthopedic surgeons. Substantial progress has been made in constructing antibacterial nanomaterials for treatment of chronic osteomyelitis. We review some current strategies for treatment of chronic osteomyelitis and their underlying mechanisms.