Use of polymethylmethacrylate to enhance screw fixation in bone.

Pull-out testing of screws inserted into cement and bone under various conditions showed that the cement-screw complex was significantly stronger when the screw was placed in soft cement and the cement was allowed to polymerize without further manipulation. When screw fixation in osteoporotic bone was reinforced with cement, the bone was the weakest component in the system. Fixation under these conditions should be enhanced by increasing the area of contact between the cement and bone. By cooling the cement to prolong its working time, it could be injected with a syringe in such a way that maximum endosteal and periosteal contact was provided.