Effect of glutaraldehyde on the bovine hydroxyapatite-gelatin-alendronate bioscrew and its fabrication

Context: Bone fractures are common body injuries and a global public health issue, caused by a traffic accident, fall, and fall from height. Bovine hydroxyapatite-gelatin-alendronate with the additional glutaraldehyde is a safe and suitable candidate for bone regeneration. Alendronate is a good candidate drug for bone fracture healing. Glutaraldehyde maintains strength in fixing bones by forming strong bonds between bovine hydroxyapatite-gelatin. Aims: To determine the effect of glutaraldehyde (GTA) on the bovine hydroxyapatite (BHA)-gelatin (GEL)-alendronate (ALE) bioscrew to its characteristic: FTIR, pore diameter, Ca/P ratio, compressive, tensile, torque strength, and degradation rate. Methods: The study tested four bioscrew composite formulas based on glutaraldehyde concentration: F1, F2, F3, and F4. Results: BHA-GEL-ALE and BHA-GEL-ALE-GTA bioscrews had spherical shapes with smooth surfaces. The results show that glutaraldehyde significantly affected the pore diameter, Ca/P ratio, tensile, torque strength, and degradation rate (p<0.05), but did not affect compressive strength significantly (p>0.05). For degradation rate, the F3 had the least weight loss and absorbed water, which means Its integrity is best among other formulas. Conclusions: Based on this study, glutaraldehyde affected the tensile, torque strength, degradation rate, shrank the pore diameter, and decreased the Ca/P ratio. BHA-GEL-ALE-GTA as bioscrew was good as a bone fixator. The optimal bioscrew formula was F3.