Biological and mechanical properties of PMMA-based bioactive bone cements

We reported previously that a bioactive PMMA-based cement was obtained by using a dry method of silanation of apatite–wollastonite glass ceramic (AW–GC) particles, and using high molecular weight PMMA particles. But handling and mechanical properties of the cement were poor (Mousa et al., J Biomed Mater Res 1999;47:336-44). In the present study, we investigated the effect of the characteristics of PMMA powder on the cement. Different cements containing different PMMA powders (CMW1, Surgical Simplex, Palacos-R and other two types of PMMA powders with Mw 270,000 and 1,200,000) and AW–GC filler in 70 wt% ratio except Palacos-R (abbreviated as B-CMW1 and B-Surg Simp, B-Palacos 50[50 wt% AW–GC filler] and B-Palacos 70 [70 wt% AW–GC filler], B-270 and B-1200) were made. Dough and setting times of B-CMW1, B-Surg Simp B-270 and B-1200 were similar to the commercial CMW1 cement which did not contain bioactive powder (C-CMW1), but B-palacos which contained large PMMA beads with high Mw had delayed setting time. B-270 had the highest bending strength among the tested cements. After 4 and 8 weeks of implantation in the medullary canals of rat tibiae, the bone–cement interface was examined using SEM. The affinity index of B-1200 was significantly higher than the other types of cements. B-270 showed good combination of handling properties, high mechanical properties and showed higher bioactivity with minimal soft tissue interposition between bone and cement compared with commercial PMMA bone cement. This may increase the strength of the bone–cement interface and increase the longevity of cemented arthroplasties.