EFFECT OF GLUTARALDEHYDE AS A CROSSLINKER ON MECHANICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CATGUT REINFORCED POLYVINYL ALCOHOL–HYDROXYAPATITE COMPOSITE AS BONE– FRACTURE FIXATION MATERIAL

Metal (titanium) as a bone–fracture fixation material were characterized by very high strength and stiffness compared to mechanical bone, thus could lead to bone atrophy. This condition requires a secondary surgical procedure to remove bone–fracture fixation devices, leads to increase of treatment time, recovery time and nursing costs. In this study, we use absorbable material (biodegradable) to avoid the secondary surgical procedure. Previous study shows catgut reinforced PVA–HA (60: 40) composite, did not reach sufficient mechanical strength as a bone–fracture fixation material. In this study, we used glutaraldehyde as a crosslinker to improve the mechanical characteristics of the composite. The specimens were prepared for tensile and bending test and immersed in phosphate–buffered saline (PBS) solution with pH 7.4 and incubated at 37 0C. The specimens were tested for mechanical strength during the period of 0 and 60 days. The results showed that the addition of glutaraldehyde (1%) as a crosslinker could significantly improve the mechanical strength of catgut reinforced Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA)–hydroxyapatite (HA) composite as a bone–fracture fixation material.