title: Effect of thermal treatment on sterility, molecular and mechanical properties of various polylactides. 2. Poly(L/D-lactide) and poly(L/DL-lactide).
abstract: Pins for orthopaedic applications injection-moulded from as-supplied poly(L/D-lactide) 95/5% and poly(L/DL-lactide) 95/5%, raw as-supplied polymers or raw methanol-extracted polymers were heat-treated for a predetermined time at 135 degrees C under moisture-free argon. The sterility, molecular weight, polydispersity, mechanical properties, and crystallinity of the heat-treated samples were evaluated. All the samples heat treated under argon were sterile after 2 h exposure to heat. The heat-treated pins and raw as-supplied polymers showed a continuous decrease in molecular weight over the entire 50 h of heating, the decrease being more substantial for poly(L/D-lactide) than poly(L/DL-lactide). Raw methanol-extracted polymers showed an increase of molecular weight after 2 h of heat treatment, followed by a gradual decrease of molecular weight up to 50 h. A drop in the bending strength, an increase in the bending moduli, and no change in the shear strength was observed for polylactide pins during the first 5 h of thermal treatment. For both the polymers, there was a progressive increase in crystallinity over time of thermal treatment, and practically no change in the melting temperature.
authors.affiliation: Polymer Research, AO/ASIF Research Institute, Davos, Switzerland.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gogolewski
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mainil-Varlet
mesh_terms: D001858:Bone Nails; D018786:Bone Substitutes; D004355:Drug Stability; D006358:Hot Temperature; D019563:Mechanics; D008970:Molecular Weight; D011091:Polyesters / Q000737:chemistry*; D013242:Sterilization; D013718:Tensile Strength; D013816:Thermodynamics
chemical_list: D018786:Bone Substitutes; D011091:Polyesters; C033616:poly(lactide)