Can you tell us a little about antibiotic beads? Our father had cellulitis and ended up with a compartment syndrome. When they opened up his leg in surgery, they put these beads inside. We've never heard of such a thing before.

Antibiotic beads have been available since 1974. They are used most often for bone and soft tissue infections. Applying antibiotic directly to the wound bed delivers higher concentrations of the drug.

In fact, this type of local application of antibiotic is 200 times more potent than oral (pill form) antibiotics. The patient gets the benefit of the anti-bacterial drug without systemic side effects (such as killing the natural, healthy bacteria in the gut).

The antibiotic is mixed with cement powder to form a smooth, soft paste-like dough. Some surgeons roll the substance by hand into a ball. They must work quickly to avoid too much exposure to the fumes. And the cement sets up quickly requiring fast formation of the beads.

The beads are placed inside the wound and left for two weeks. That's about how long the bactericidal levels last. After four weeks, the body starts to see the beads as a foreign substance. The immune system mounts an attack to them. This reaction is avoided by removing or replacing the beads when needed.