Adjustable Polyurethane Foam as Filling Material for a Novel Spondyloplasty: Biomechanics and Biocompatibility

• Published in: World neurosurgery 2018-04, Vol.112, p.e848-e858
• Main Authors: Jiang, Hongzhen, Sitoci-Ficici, Kerim Hakan, Reinshagen, Clemens, Molcanyi, Marek, Zivcak, Jozef, Hudak, Radovan, Laube, Thorsten, Schnabelrauch, Matthias, Weisser, Jürgen, Schäfer, Ute, Pinzer, Thomas, Schackert, Gabriele, Zhang, Xifeng, Wähler, Mario, Brautferger, Uta, Rieger, Bernhard
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biokinemetrie; PMMA; Polyurethane foam; Vertebral compression fracture; Vertebroplasty
• ISSN: 1878-8750; 1878-8769
• DOI: 10.1016/j.wneu.2018.01.174

To investigate the biomechanics and biocompatibility of polyurethane (PU) foam with adjustable stiffness as a filling material for a novel spondyloplasty that is designed to reduce the risk of postoperative adjacent level fractures. Sixty individual porcine lumbar vertebrae were randomly split into 4 groups: A, B, C, and D. Group A served as unmodified vertebral body controls. Groups B, C, and D consisted of hollowed vertebral bodies. Vertebrae of groups C and D were filled with adjustable PU foams of different stiffness. The compressive strength and stiffness of vertebrae from groups A–D were recorded and analyzed. 3T3 mouse fibroblasts were cultured with preformed PU foams for 4 days to test biocompatibility. The strength and stiffness of the hollowed groups were lower than in group A. However, the differences were not statistically significant between group A and group C (P > 0.05), and were obviously different between group A and group B or group D (P < 0.01 and