Viruses that eat bacteria could help save infected joint replacements
NCT ID NCT07698002
First seen Jul 13, 2026 · Last updated Jul 14, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This trial investigates whether adding bacteriophages—viruses that specifically target and kill bacteria—to standard surgery and antibiotics can improve outcomes for people with infected hip or knee replacements. The study enrolls adults with an infection caused by Staphylococcus aureus or Pseudomonas aeruginosa who are undergoing a procedure to clean the joint while keeping the implant in place. Participants receive three injections of a phage cocktail directly into the joint over two weeks, and researchers monitor safety and treatment response.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- bacteriophage cocktails targeting Staphylococcus aureus or Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this approach could improve the success rate of joint infection treatment, reducing the need for repeated surgeries and long antibiotic courses.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small early feasibility trial with only 10 participants, so results may not apply broadly. Phage therapy may cause allergic reactions or lead to bacterial resistance.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 2/3
Runs two stages together: whether the treatment works, then large-scale confirmation.
- Participants
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About 10 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jul 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Aug 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Patients are 18 years or older * Patients have been diagnosed with bacterial PJI caused by a single organism (either S. aureus or P. aeruginosa) confirmed through synovial fluid cultures. * Patients are undergoing DAIR surgical procedure for hip or knee PJI * Patients are clinically stable and independently mobile * Patients are willing and able to consent Exclusion Criteria: * Patients have cultured multiple bacteria, and it is difficult for physicians to determine which bacteria is causing the disease * Patients develop a life-threatening condition or a condition that leads to deterioration of the patient's medical condition and that is unrelated to the known PJI as cerebrovascular accident, angina, cancer. * Patient's clinical condition is no longer stable and deteriorating, for example, if the patient develops sepsis secondary to PJI prior to the commencement of the phage therapy. * Patients who have only been through a hemiarthroplasty or uni-compartmental arthroplasty with infected implant component * Patients receiving any immunomodulating or immunosuppressive therapy medications for malignancy or autoimmune disease (with exception to inflammatory arthritis), chronic glucocorticoid use (≥ 20mg of prednisolone daily for at least 1 month with another cause of immunosuppression), and history of solid organ and/or bone marrow transplantation. * Presence of concurrent active viral infection, or history of uncontrolled HIV (CD4 count \<200 cells/uL). * Patient is pregnant or breast feeding
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
Ottawa, Canada
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