Flexural Properties of Silorane Bone Cement

There has been little change in the formulation of bone cements since Sir John Charnley first developed them in the 1970s. Bone cements are methacrylate based systems packaged in two components [1]. The powder component contains a mixture of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), methyl methacrylate-styrene-copolymer, and a radio opacifier (either barium sulfate or zirconium oxide) [2]. The second component is a liquid monomer typically containing methyl methacrylate, N, N-dimethyl-p-toluidine (activator), and hydroquinone. Flexural strength and flexural modulus of bone cements range between 60–75 MPa and 2.2–3.3 GPa, respectively [3, 4]. ISO 5833 requires bone cements to have a strength greater than 50 MPa and a modulus greater than 1.8 GPa [5].