Benzylpenicillin levels in the serum and bone tissue of the lower jaw in patients with chronic traumatic osteomyelitis after intraosseous and intramuscular administration

Penetration of benzylpenicillin into pathological foci was studied in 48 patients with chronic traumatic osteomyelitis of the lower jaw after intramuscular and intraosseous administration of the antibiotic. A group of 10 patients operated for congenital deformations of the lower jaw was used as the control. The results showed that after intramuscular administration benzylpenicillin penetration into the inflammation focus of the lower jaw was better than that into the intact bone only for the first 30 minutes. At later periods it was detected in both the cases as traces. After intraosseous administration of the drug in doses of 50,000 and 200,000 units its accumulation in the bone tissue of the patients with chronic traumatic osteomyelitis of the lower jaw in 30 minutes was respectively 75 and 160 times higher than that after the intramuscular injections. The period of its presence in the pathological focus as the therapeutic levels was also higher i. e. up to 2 hours. Intraosseous route of benzylpenicillin administration is likely to decrease the quantity of the drug needed for treating patients with chronic osteomyelitis of the lower jaw.