Antimicrobial cationic surfactant-loaded hydrogel coatings in preventing medical device-associated infections

Abstract

Hydrogels described herein were developed as anti-microbial coating materials. Three different hydrogels, p(HEMA), p(85%HEMA-co-15% MMA), and p(85% HEMA-co-15% MAA) were loaded with two cationic surfactants, BAK, and DDAB, respectively. DDAB owned better effectivity than BAK in killing S. aureus and E. coli. Compared to unmodified(HEMA), all drug-loaded samples exhibited significant anti-adherence ability against E. coli, but on surfaces of all DDAB-loaded hydrogels, bacteria were below the limit of detection, so DDAB was more effective than BAK in conferring anti-adherent properties.