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. 2021 Jul 9;13(7):e16278.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.16278. eCollection 2021 Jul.

The Antibacterial Effectiveness of Propolis on Medical Screws

Lokman Kehribar  1 , Hüseyin Sina Coşkun  2 , Serkan Surucu  3 , Mahmud Aydın  4 , Mahir Mahiroğulları  5
Affiliations

The Antibacterial Effectiveness of Propolis on Medical Screws

Lokman Kehribar et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Background Medical screws are widely used in orthopedic surgery for fracture fixation. The antibacterial effectiveness of propolis is well known. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate the antibacterial effectiveness of medical screws coated with propolis. Methodology Between March 2019 and April 2020, we formed five experimental groups and investigated the antibacterial activities of different amounts of propolis and polymer-coated screws. Staphylococcus aureus was used to determine the antibacterial activity. Carbopol, chosen as the model polymer, was used to improve the adhesion of propolis to the screws. Agar diffusion test of surface-coated screws was used to evaluate the antibacterial effect. Results The mean zone diameters were 24.3 ± 1.1, 23.0 ± 0.8, 21.8 ± 1.6, 19.3 ± 0.6, and 20.2 ± 0.8 mm for IS-7.5, IS-5.0, IS-2.5, IS-P, and IS-P-7.5, respectively. The IS-7.5 group had the most antibacterial activities. The antibacterial activities of the medical screws determined using the agar diffusion method were significantly increased by the propolis coating on the screws. Our results showed that the propolis-coated screws had antibacterial activity against S. aureus. Conclusions As a result, we believe that the combination of gel and propolis is an effective method in increasing the antibacterial resistance of medical screws and preventing the formation of a biofilm layer of microorganisms.

Keywords: antimicrobial activities; biocompatible charged gel; biofilm layer; propolis-coated screw; surface modification.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Scanning electron microscopic images of (A) noncoated and (B) coated medical screws (IS-7.5).
Figure 2
Figure 2. Electron dispersive spectroscopy atomic mappings of (A) noncoated and (B) coated medical screws (IS-7.5).
C: carbon; Ti: titanium; O: oxygen; P: phosphorous; Al: aluminum
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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