Background: Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), is a well known biocompatible polymer widely used in the preparation of bone cements. The size and morphology of cement powder phase play important role in physical and mechanical properties of the resultant cement. This study aimed to evaluate the structure, mechanical strength and cytocompatibility of bone cements made of the same liquid phase and powders with different morphologies.
Methods: PMMA microspheres were synthesized via an oil-in-water emulsion solvent evaporation method, and the effect of particle size on the structure, mechanical properties and cytotoxicity of acrylic-based bone cements was investigated. Two different concentrations of the organic PMMA solution (5 and 20 wt%) were employed to control the particle size. XRD and FTIR techniques were employed to characterize phase and chemical bands. The setting time, compressive strength and cell viability were assessed by standard procedures.
Results: XRD and FTIR analyses confirmed the structural purity and complete removal of undesired phases, while SEM images revealed uniform spherical particles. The results showed that decreasing the average particle size from approximately 200 to 20 µm reduced the cement setting time from 300 to 90 seconds and increased the compressive strength from 21.4 to 81.7 MPa. Cements made of both different-sized powders exhibited adequate cell viability.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that controlling the size of PMMA microparticles can play an effective role in developing bone cements with optimized strength and setting time for medical and dental applications. These results provide valuable insights to improve the clinical performance of acrylic bone cements.