The effect and safety of dressing composed by nylon threads covered with metallic silver in wound treatment.

Silver is used worldwide in dressings for wound management. Silver has demonstrated great efficacy against a broad range of microorganisms, but there is very little data about the systemic absorption and toxicity of silver in vivo. In this study, the antimicrobial effect of the silver-coated dressing (SilverCoat(®)) was evaluated in vitro against the most common microorganisms found in wounds, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae. We also performed an excisional skin lesion assay in mice to evaluate wound healing after 14 days of treatment with a silver-coated dressing, and we measured the amount of silver in the blood, the kidneys and the liver after treatment. Our data demonstrated that the nylon threads coated with metallic silver have a satisfactory antimicrobial effect in vitro, and the prolonged use of these threads did not lead to systemic silver absorption, did not induce toxicity in the kidneys and the liver and were not detrimental to the normal wound-healing process.

Argyria following the use of silver-coated megaprostheses: no association between the development of local argyria and elevated silver levels.

The aims of this study were to evaluate the incidence of local argyria in patients with silver-coated megaprostheses and to identify a possible association between argyria and elevated levels of silver both locally and in the blood. Between 2004 and 2011, 32 megaprostheses with silver coatings were implanted in 20 female and 12 male patients following revision arthroplasty for infection or resection of a malignant tumour, and the levels of silver locally in drains and seromas and in the blood were determined. The mean age of the patients was 46 years (10 to 81); one patient died in the immediate post-operative period and was excluded. Seven patients (23%) developed local argyria after a median of 25.7 months (interquartile range 2 to 44.5). Patients with and without local argyria had comparable levels of silver in the blood and aspiration fluids. The length of the implant did not influence the development of local argyria. Patients with clinical evidence of local argyria had no neurological symptoms and no evidence of renal or hepatic failure. Thus, we conclude that the short-term surveillance of blood silver levels in these patients is not required.