The influence of the time-dependent properties of bone cement on stress in the femoral cement mantle of total hip arthroplasty

An empirically determined formula for the creep behavior of bone cement was incorporated into a validated computer model of a cemented femoral total hip arthroplasty component. The stress patterns in the cement mantle were observed over a period of one week, in one instance where the stem-cement interface was rigidly bonded, and in a second, where it was allowed to slip. Principal stresses and maximum shear stresses were shown to decrease rapidly after loading in both situations, suggesting that the stresses generated were not high enough to cause immediate failure, although they may be significant in the long term. (C) 1999 Kluwer Academic Publishers.