Effect of manual vancomycin loading on the bending strength and flexural modulus of bone cement

Objectives

Manual addition of antibiotics when prefabricated antibiotic-loaded bone cement is not available is possible but should be performed with caution due to the effects of the antibiotic on the mechanical properties of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). This study investigates differences in bending strength and modulus and morphology of bone cement resulting from two variations in manual vancomycin loading.