At the 2023 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), Healio recorded a video of Nishant Suneja, MD, director of complex orthopaedic trauma and deformity correction at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, discussing his latest research.
In the first study of its kind, Dr. Suneja and colleagues examined the safety and postoperative outcomes of using calcium sulfate beads in a variety of orthopedic reconstruction procedures performed on 56 patients.
The study showed that the use of antibiotic-loaded synthetic calcium sulfate beads demonstrated adequate clinical outcomes in patients at high risk for infection, with a significant increase in serum creatinine levels postoperatively and no increase in serum calcium levels or blood urea nitrogen levels. This suggests the safety and efficacy of antibiotic-loaded synthetic calcium sulfate beads for patients at high risk of post-operative infection. 14% of patients in the study required reoperation.
Additionally, Dr. Suneja shared that, “Despite not being statistically significant from its preoperative peak, the observed post-surgical decrease in serum calcium may be suggestive of osteogenesis and fracture healing.”