The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Vol 68, Issue 9 1389-1395, Copyright © 1986 by Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Inc
The contributions of dietary protein and mineral to the healing of experimental fractures. A biomechanical study
TA Einhorn, F Bonnarens and AH Burstein
We examined the contributions of dietary protein and mineral to
fracture-healing by assessing the mechanical properties of fracture callus
in rats that were fed a diet that was deficient in or enriched by these
nutrients. In order to isolate the effects of diet on fracture-healing, we
developed a method for producing a standard closed femoral fracture with
minimum-soft-tissue injury. Three groups of animals were studied. Group I
was a control group, in which the rats did not undergo an operation. The
rats in Group II underwent intramedullary pinning of the right femur, but
no fracture was created. The rats in Group III underwent pinning identical
to that used for Group II, after which a closed, transverse femoral
fracture was produced. Immediately after surgery, the animals in each group
were subdivided into five diet-treatment subgroups. Subgroup A received a
regular diet; Subgroup B received a protein-free diet; and Subgroup C
received a mineral-free diet that was lacking in calcium, phosphorus, and
vitamin D. Subgroup D received a protein-supplemented diet that was
composed of three times the calculated requirement of protein, and Subgroup
E received a mineral-supplemented diet that was composed of three times the
calculated requirements of calcium and phosphorus as well as a therapeutic
dose of vitamin D, equivalent to that used in the treatment of
osteomalacia. At the end of five weeks, the animals were killed and the
right femur of each one was subjected to torsion-testing to
failure.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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