Influence of polymeric additives on the biological properties of brushite cements: an experimental study in rabbit

The resorbability and ability of calcium phosphate hydraulic cements to promote new bone formation was investigated in vivo. The effects of two hydrosoluble polymeric additives (hyaluronic acid, and xanthan gum,) on the biological response of two brushite cement formulations (BHC-A vs BHC-B) was investigated. The brushite cements differed in P/Ca (0.71 vs 0.98) and S/Ca (0.10 vs 0.005) atomic ratios and by the presence of calcium sulfate hemihydrate in BHC-A. Polymer-free cements were used as controls. Cement specimens were injected in cylindrical bone defects manually drilled in the distal condyle of rabbit femora. The implants were harvested at 12 and 24 weeks after implantation and subjected to quantitative histomorphometry. The study showed a significantly lower resorption rate for cement BHC-A, which induces the formation of well-mineralized bone in close apposition to the residual material. In contrast, cement BHC-B showed a significant increase of bone formation period and the formation of a thick layer of unmineralized osteoid tissue at the bone/residual cement interface. The presence of xanthan gum made the biological response even worse, particularly in the case of cement BHC-B. The presence of hyaluronic acid has little effect, except for a slight decrease in initial resorption rate, in the case of cement BHC-A.