The effect of gentamicin sulphate on the fracture properties of a manually mixed bone cement

Abstract

This work investigates the effect of adding gentamicin, an antibiotic, on the fracture properties of bone cement. Endurance limit, fatigue crack propagation and fracture toughness were determined for a polymethylmethacrylate-based cement, containing 10% w/w of barium sulphate as radiopacifying agent, and the same formulation modified by the addition of 4.22% w/w of gentamicin sulphate. The antibiotic does not affect the endurance limit nor the fracture toughness of the material. There are significant differences in the parameters of the Paris' law fitting the crack growth data: once the main crack is nucleated, it initially propagates at a lower rate but thereafter accelerates faster in gentamicin loaded bone cement. Despite this difference, the growth rate for the same stress intensity factor remains of the same order of magnitude in both formulations. The addition of 4.22% w/w of gentamicin sulphate to radiopaque bone cement has a negligible total effect on the fracture properties of the material.