The effects of Haversian fluid pressure and harmonic axial loading on the poroelastic behaviors of a single osteon

Abstract

In order to well understand the mechanism of the mechanotransduction in bone, we propose a new model of transverse isotropic and poroelastic osteon cylinder considering Haversian fluid pressure. The analytical pore pressure and velocity solutions are obtained to examine the fluid transport behavior and pressure distribution in a loaded osteon on two different exterior surface cases. Case I is stress free and fully permeable and case II is impermeable. The following are the results obtained. (i) The Haversian fluid may not be ignored because it can enlarge the whole osteonal fluid pressure field, and it bears the external loads together with the solid skeleton. (ii) The increase of both axial strain amplitude and frequency can result in the increase of fluid pressure and velocity amplitudes, while in case II, the frequency has little effect on the fluid pressure amplitude. (iii) Under the same loading conditions, the pressure amplitude in case II is larger than that in case I, while the velocity amplitude is smaller than that in case I. This model permits the linking of the external loads to the osteonal fluid pressure and velocity, which may be a stimulus to the mechanotransduction of bone remodeling signals.