The effects of particulate bone cements at the bone-implant interface

We used a rat model in vivo to study the effects of particulate bone cements at the bone-implant interface. A ceramic pin was implanted into the tibiae of 48 rats. Three types of particle of clinically relevant size were produced from one bone-cement base without radio-opacifier, with zirconium dioxide (ZrO2) and with barium sulphate (BaSO4). The rats were randomly assigned to four groups to receive one of the three bone cements or normal saline with 2% v/v Sprague-Dawley serum as the control. A total of 10(9) particles was injected into the knee at 8, 10 and 12 weeks after the original surgery. The animals were killed at 14 weeks and the tibiae processed for histomorphometry. The area of fibrous tissue and the gap between the implant and bone were measured using image analysis. All three types of particle were associated with a larger area of bone resorption than the control. Only in the case of the BaSO4-containing cement did this reach statistical significance (p = 0.01). Particles of bone cement appear to promote osteolysis at the bone-implant interface and this effect is most marked when BaSO4 is used as the radiopaque agent.