Application of antibiotics in the sterilization of homogeneic heart valves

Abstract

A significant deficit in the availability of human tissues has not resulted in less general interest in homogeneous heart valves. The application of homografts still remains the optimal solution in the surgical treatment of congenital and acquired defects. Obtaining the optimal properties of these valves is followed by processing, including sterilization. This method provides sterility with rewarding cell viability and maintenance of the tissues’ native features. The prepared material possesses appropriate properties at the level of structure and surface, which results in correct functioning in vivo. During the past several decades, sterilization conditions and the compositions of antibiotic mixtures have changed significantly. In this period, significant progress in the development of this method was achieved; however, in the last few years, various flaws in antibiotic sterilization of homografts have been revealed. The release of the antibiotic during microbiological tests of tissue evaluated for implantation or the possibility of side effects as a result of antibiotic release after implantation remain the most important issues here. In this work we characterized the main antibiotic mixtures that are currently in use.