ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Veterinary Surgery
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fvets.2025.1613295
This article is part of the Research TopicAnimal Biomechanics: Application of Biomedical Engineering to Veterinary Sciences for Animal Healthcare, Volume IIView all 11 articles
Ex vivo evaluation of polyethylene cable compared to stainless steel cerclage wire in a canine fracture model
Provisionally accepted- 1College of Veterinary Medicine, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, United States
- 2Bagley College of Engineering, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, United States
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Introduction: The objective of this study was to compare the biomechanical stability of an ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) orthopedic cable system to stainless steel cerclage wire (SSW) fixation in cyclic four-point bending in a cadaveric fracture model.Materials and Methods: A long oblique osteotomy model was employed using paired canine cadaveric femurs. The osteotomies were stabilized with either three UHMWPE cables (n=10) or three 18 gauge stainless steel loop cerclage wires (n=10). Cyclic testing was performed by applying increasing force at 2 Hz until construct failure, defined as ≥2mm of actuator displacement. Data analyzed included cycles to failure, load at failure, and dynamic stiffness.Results: There was no statistically significant difference in any of the outcomes tested between constructs. Visible loosening was noted in all loop cerclage constructs. No visible loosening of the UHMWPE cable was noted.Discussion: The results suggest that the UHMWPE cable’s resistance to failure was comparable to SSW in four-point bending. Additional biomechanical testing would be needed to assess for statistical significance as well as performance in torsion and compression or with adjunctive fixation methods. Future clinical studies in veterinary applications are needed to assess how the UHMWPE cable performs in vivo.
Keywords: UHMWPE (Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene), Cerclage wire, Fracture repair, canine, Biomechanical, Femur, Orthopedic Cable
Received: 17 Apr 2025; Accepted: 03 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Day, Elder, Brookshire and Jaffe. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Michael Jaffe, College of Veterinary Medicine, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, United States
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