Ultrasonic determination of elastic properties in human craniofacial cortical bone is problematic because of a lack of information about the principal material axes, and because the cortex is often thinner than in long bones. This study investigated solutions that permit reasonable determination of elastic properties in the human mandible. We tested whether ultrasonic velocities could be reliably measured in cylindrical samples of aluminum and mandibular bone, and the effects of reduced specimen thickness. Results indicted that (1) varying shape had minimal effects on ultrasonic velocities or derived elastic properties, and (2) ultrasonic velocities have relatively increased measurement error as propagation distances decreased. The increased error in velocity measurements of mandibular cortical specimens of less than 1.2 mm in thickness should be considered when assessing the reliability of single measurements.
Issue Section:
Technical Papers
1.
Lees
, S.
, Ahern
, J. M.
, and Leonard
, M.
, 1983
, “Parameters Influencing the Sonic Velocity in Compact Calcified Tissues of Various Species
,” J. Acoust. Soc. Am.
, 74
, pp. 28
–33
.2.
Reilly
, D. T.
, and Burstein
, A. H.
, 1974
, “The Mechanical Properties of Cortical Bone—Review Article
,” J. Bone Jt. Surg.
, 56-A
, pp. 1001
–1021
.3.
Katz
, J. L.
, and Yoon
, H. S.
, 1984
, “The Structure and Anisotropic Mechanical Properties of Bone
,” IEEE Trans. Biomed. Eng.
, 31
, pp. 878
–884
.4.
Lowet
, G.
, and Van der Perre
, G.
, 1996
, “Ultrasound Velocity Measurement in Long Bones: Measurement Method and Simulation of Ultrasound Wave Propagation
,” J. Biomech.
, 29
, pp. 1255
–1262
.5.
Njeh
, C. F.
, Hans
, D.
, Wu
, C.
, Kantorovich
, E.
, Sister
, M.
, Fuerst
, T.
, and Genant
, H. K.
, 1999
, “An In Vitro Investigation of the Dependence on Sample Thickness of the Speed of Sound along the Specimen
,” Med. Eng. Phys.
, 21
, pp. 651
–659
.6.
Korioth
, T. W. P.
, Romilly
, D. P.
, and Hannam
, A. G.
, 1992
, “Three-Dimensional Finite Element Stress Analysis of the Dentate Human Mandible
,” Am. J. Phys. Anthropol.
, 88
, pp. 69
–96
.7.
Rho
, J. Y.
, 1996
, “An Ultrasonic Method for Measuring the Elastic Properties of Human Tibial Cortical and Cancellous Bone
,” Ultrasonics
, 34
, pp. 777
–783
.8.
Dechow
, P. C.
, and Hylander
, W. L.
, 2000
, “Elastic Properties and Masticatory Bone Stress in the Macaque Mandible
,” Am. J. Phys. Anthropol.
, 112
, pp. 553
–574
.9.
van Eijden
, T. M. G. J.
, 2000
, “Biomechanics of the Mandible
,” Crit. Rev. Oral Biol. Med.
, 11
, pp. 123
–136
.10.
Frost, J. M., 1986, “Intermediate Organization of the Skeleton, Volume I,” CRC Press, Boca Raton.
11.
Ashman
, R. B.
, Cowin
, S. C.
, Van Buskirk
, W. C.
, and Rice
, J. C.
, 1984
, “A Continuous Wave Technique for the Measurement of the Elastic Properties of Cortical Bone
,” J. Biomech.
, 17
, pp. 349
–361
.12.
Ashman, R. B., 1982, “Ultrasonic Determination of the Elastic Properties of Cortical Bone: Techniques and Limitations,” PhD. thesis, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA.
13.
Kohles
, S. S.
, Bowers
, J. R.
, Vailas
, A. C.
, and Vanderby
, Jr, R.
, 1997
, “Ultrasonic Wave Velocity Measurement in Small Polymeric and Cortical Bone Specimens
,” J. Biomech.
, 119
, pp. 232
–236
.14.
Lees
, S.
, Heeley
, J. D.
, and Cleary
, P. F.
, 1979
, “A Study of Some Properties of a Sample of Bovine Cortical Bone using Ultrasound
,” Calcif. Tissue Int.
, 29
, pp. 107
–117
.15.
Lipson
, S. F.
, and Katz
, J. L.
, 1984
, “The Relationship between Elastic Properties and Microstructure of Bovine Cortical Bone
,” J. Biomech.
, 17
, pp. 231
–240
.16.
Petrty´l
, M.
, Hert
, J.
, and Fiala
, P.
, 1996
, “Spatial Organization of the Haversian Bone in Man
,” J. Biomech.
, 29
, pp. 161
–169
.17.
Turner
, C. H.
, Chandran
, A.
, and Pidaparti
, R. M. V.
, 1995
, “The Anisotropy of Osteonal Bone and Its Ultrastructural Implications
,” Bone (N.Y.)
, 17
, pp. 85
–89
.18.
Schwartz-Dabney
, C. L.
, and Dechow
, P. C.
, 1997
, “Variations in Cortical Material Properties from throughout the Human Mandible
,” J. Dent. Res.
, 76SI
, pp. 249
249
.19.
Schwartz-Dabney
, C. L.
, and Dechow
, P. C.
, 1998
, “Changes in Material Properties of Human Mandibular Bone Following Edentulation
,” J. Dent. Res.
, 77SI
, pp. 863
863
.20.
Turner
, C. H.
, and Cowin
, S. C.
, 1988
, “Errors Induced by Off-Axis Measurement of the Elastic Properties of Bone
,” J. Biomech.
, 110
, pp. 213
–215
.21.
Antich
, P. P.
, Anderson
, J. A.
, Ashman
, R. B.
, Dowdey
, J. E.
, Gonzales
, J.
, Murry
, R. C.
, Zerwekh
, J. E.
, and Pak
, C. Y. C.
, 1991
, “Measurement of Mechanical Properties of Bone Material In Vitro by Ultrasound Reflection: Methodology and Comparison with Ultrasound Transmission
,” J. Bone Miner. Res.
, 6
, pp. 417
–426
.22.
Ashman
, R. B.
, and Van Buskirk
, W. C.
, 1987
, “The Elastic Properties of a Human Mandible
,” Adv. Dent. Res.
, 1
, pp. 64
–67
.23.
Carter, C., 1989, “The Elastic Properties of the Human Mandible,” PhD. thesis, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA.
24.
Dechow, P. C., Schwartz-Dabney, C. L., and Ashman, R. B., 1992, “Elastic Properties of the Human Mandibular Corpus,” Bone Biodynamics in Orthodontic and Orthopedic Treatment, D. S. Carlson, and S. A. Goldstein, eds., Center for Human Growth and Development, Ann Arbor, Michigan, pp. 299–314.
25.
Dechow
, P. C.
, Nail
, G. A.
, Schwartz-Dabney
, C. L.
, and Ashman
, R. B.
, 1993
, “Elastic Properties of Human Supraorbital and Mandibular Bone
,” Am. J. Phys. Anthropol.
, 90
, pp. 291
–306
.26.
Zioupos, P., Smith, C. W., and An, Y. H., 2000, “Factors Affecting Mechanical Properties of Bone,” Mechanical Testing of Bone and the Bone-Implant Interface, Y. H. An, and R. A. Draughn, eds., CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, pp. 65–85.
27.
Mehta
, S. S.
, Oz
, O. K.
, and Antich
, P. P.
, 1998
, “Bone Elasticity and Ultrasound Velocity Are Affected by Subtle Changes in the Organic Matrix
,” J. Bone Miner. Res.
, 13
, pp. 114
–121
.28.
Schwartz-Dabney
, C. L.
, and Dechow
, P. C.
, 2002, “Variations in Cortical Material Properties throughout the Human Dentate Mandible,” Am. J. Phys. Anthropol., in press.29.
Martin, R. B., and Sharkey, N. A., 2001, “Mechanical Effects of Postmortem Changes, Preservation, and Allograft Bone Treatments,” Bone Mechanics Handbook, Second Edition, S. C. Cowin, ed., CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, Chapter 20.
30.
Katz
, J. L.
, Yoon
, H. S.
, Lipson
, S.
, Maharidge
, R.
, Meunier
, A.
, and Christel
, P.
, 1984
, “The Effects of Remodeling on the Elastic Properties of Bone
,” Calcif. Tissue Int.
, 36
, pp. S31–S36
S31–S36
.31.
Dechow
, P. C.
, and Huynh
, T.
, 1994
, “Effects of Preservation on the Anisotropic Elastic Properties of Mandibular Cortical Bone
,” J. Morphol.
, 220
, pp. 339
339
.32.
Yoon
, H. S.
, and Katz
, J. L.
, 1976
, “Ultrasonic Wave Paropagation in Human Cortical Bone-II. Measurements of Elastic Properties and Microhardness
,” J. Biomech.
, 9
, pp. 459
–464
.33.
Rose, J. L., 1999, “Ultrasonic Waves in Solid Media,” Cambridge University Press, New York.
34.
Turner, C. H., and Burr, D. B., 2001, “Experimental Techniques for Bone Mechanics,” Bone Mechanics Handbook, Second Edition, S. C. Cowin, ed., CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, Chapter 7.
Copyright © 2002
by ASME
You do not currently have access to this content.
