Efficacy of Combination of <i>N</i>-acetylcysteine, Gentamicin, and Amphotericin B for Prevention of Microbial Colonization of Ventricular Assist Devices

Abstract

We assessed the in vitro antimicrobial activity and the in vivo efficacy of dipping ventricular assist devices in a combination of N-acetylcysteine, gentamicin, and amphotericin B (NAC/G/A). Ventricular assist devices dipped in NAC/G/A exhibited broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity in vitro and were less likely than undipped devices to become colonized with Staphylococcus aureus in a rabbit model.