Antibiotics have been around in various forms since the invention of penicillin back in 1928. The majority are in oral form, although sprays and drops are also available – and some are given intravenously when necessary.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Ear infections and treatments
Otitis media, commonly known as middle-ear infection, affects a significant number of people each year, mostly children. The standard treatment is a course of antibiotics; usually 7 to 10 days’ worth in either tablet form, drops or a spray.
However, convincing children to take one lot of antibiotics, let alone a week’s worth, can be extremely challenging! This was the conundrum that researchers at the Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston Medical Centre, and Massachusetts Eye and Ear set out to solve.
The proposed solution
The team developed a bioengineered antibiotic gel which was able to deliver a full course of antibiotics in a single application. Not only was this easier to administer, the fact that it was topical meant that there was no need to subject the rest of the body to antibiotics.
The gel was able to penetrate the tympanic membrane by hardening and then dispersing the antibiotics into the middle ear, thanks to the use of chemical permeation enhancers which open up molecular pores.
Testing
When tested in the lab on chinchillas, the gel was able to dispense enough antibiotics into the middle ear to completely cure infections in 100% of subjects. This compared to just over 60% who were cured with seven days use of traditional ciprofloxacin ear drops. Additionally, those treated with the gel had no antibiotic in their bloodstream.
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Tackling antibiotic resistance
Repeated doses of standard antibiotics can also result in them losing their effectiveness due to the bacteria becoming resistant. This would, theoretically, be avoided using a single-application gel or similar topical antibiotics.