Comparison of biofilm formation on new Phonax and Provox 2 voice prostheses—A pilot study

Abstract

Polyurethane material for voice prostheses seems to reduce biofilm stability and infiltrative processes.

Hyphal Growth in Human Fungal Pathogens and Its Role in Virulence

“…Remarkably, the hyphae of C. albicans and a variety of other filamentous pathogens are able to penetrate the soft medical silicones which are used in the manufacture of prosthetic devices and contact lenses. Hyphal infiltration causes the silicone to expand and stiffen, thus, compromising the function of the device (Figure 2(a)(ii)) [7, 8]. Mucosal biofilms form at sites occupied by multiple species of microbes [49].…”

“…However, no chemotropic growth has been observed in response to cAMP or retinoic acid, which can mediate growth behaviour in mammalian cells, although polarised mating projections do respond chemotropically to mating pheromone (Brand, unpublished data) [96]. Instead, pathogenic fungi seem to be hard-wired to penetrate any substrate they are in contact with, since hyphae in biofilms formed on inert silicones invade the abiotic material despite the apparent lack of extrinisic biological signals [7]. C. albicans responds to other external stimuli in vitro , displaying aerotropism under hypoxic conditions and galvanotropism, where hyphae germinate and orient towards the cathode in an applied electric field (Figure 2(c)(iii)) [94, 97, 98].…”

“…C. albicans , Malassezia , and A. fumigatus are also found in biofilms on abiotic medical plastics. The biofilm environment poses significant medical problems since it promotes resistance to antifungal drugs, acts as a reservoir for seeding further infection, and compromises the mechanical function of devices such as voice prostheses and contact lenses [7, 8]. …”

Candida Virulence Factors

“…It has been suggested that the penetrative nature of Candida is intrinsic and that these organisms have been programmed to infi ltrate any surface they contact. Hyphae are able to penetrate into silicone material that biofi lms are grown on, even despite the absence of any biological interactions with the surface (Leonhard et al, 2010 ). The directionality of hyphal tip growth is responsive to the surrounding environment, allowing the tip to direct its way around obstructions or toward essential nutrients .…”

Problemlösung bei Stimmrehabilitation mittels Stimmprothesen

“…Tetraplegie [1,29] B i l d u n g v o n K r u s t e n u n d B o r k e n Mediastinitis/Mediastinalabszess [3,16,36] Bildung eines Biofilms/Candidabewuchs [2,18] Schwere lokale Hautinfektion [1] Granulationsgewebe, Webbildung, Bildung einer intramuralen Tasche Ösophagusstriktur [6,31] Prothesendefekt Ileus nach Stimmprotheseningestion [12] Inkarzeration der Prothese intramural in der Ösophaguswand [7] Aspiration der Stimmprothese [4, 5, 8-10, 14, 19, 30, 33] Leckage und Prothesenfehlfunktion bei intrathorakalem Unterdruck [11] Schwere Stimmfistelerweiterung [21,14] Augmentationsmaterialien In der Literatur wird die Verwendung von Eigenfett, Bioplastic ® , Kollagen, Hyaluronsäure, Zymera und GM-CSF (Granulozyten-Makrophagen-Koloniestimulierender Faktor) beschrieben. Die Kollektivgröße in den Falldarstellungen liegt zwischen 1 und 10 Patienten.…”