Patients with spinal fractures, caused by tumors or osteoporosis, usually undergo a procedure called kyphoplasty, where the fracture is filled with surgical cement. Researchers at the University of Illinois, Chicago, developed a magnetic surgical cement that may heal spinal fractures and provide targeted drug delivery. This technique has the potential to become a surgical option for patients with primary spinal column tumors or tumors that metastasize to the spinal column. The researchers found that modifying the kyphoplasty bone cement with magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) stabilizes the spinal column and provides a targeted drug delivery system.
They used a porcine model to study the magnetically-guided drug delivery system. They injected MNPs into the magnetic cement in the animal's spinal vertebrae. Analysis of histological sections of several vertebral bodies demonstrated enhanced…
