Telemetric in vivo measurement of compressive forces during consolidation in a rabbit model

A quantitative device to gain information about bone healing after fracture or distraction osteogenesis would lower the risk of refracture, malunion and pseudarthrosis. To this date, different biomechanical methods have been proposed for this task with limited application. Furthermore, none of these devices allows monitoring of physiological motion. The aim of this study was to develop a telemetric method for in vivo measurement of compressive forces during physiological motion. An innovative method was developed that can be integrated in an external fixator and that transfers the data to the computer via Bluetooth. After ex vivo validation it was applied to rabbit tibia for assessment of consolidation after tibial osteotomy. After development of the innovative method, the technique was validated ex- and in-vivo in a rabbit model. The presented method enables a telemetric measurement of compressive forces during consolidation. It proved that during consolidation the forces decreased over time from 27.6 to 15.7 Newton. This study presents a new technique to quantify bone healing of fracture or distraction osteogenesis by determination of compressive forces. The innovative of this technique compared to existing methods is the fact that it allows monitoring forces during physiological motion.