The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Vol 68, Issue 2 281-287, Copyright © 1986 by Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Inc
The effect of centrifugation on the fracture properties of acrylic bone cements
CM Rimnac, TM Wright and DL McGill
In this study, centrifugation did not alter the static or cyclic fracture
properties of bone cement. Tests of fracture toughness and fatigue-crack
propagation of centrifuged specimens of commercial cements (with and
without antibiotic additions) demonstrated no significant difference from
control values. Among the cements tested, Palacos (with and without
antibiotic) was found to have a significantly higher fracture toughness
than either Simplex or Zimmer. We attributed this difference in fracture
toughness to the higher molecular weight measured for the Palacos cements.
For the tested cements, only Simplex had a significantly greater volume
contraction on setting due to centrifugation. The results of our study
demonstrate that centrifugation of bone cement does not improve the
cement's resistance to fracture in the presence of surface imperfections,
such as those found at the bone-cement interface.