Simultaneous Presence of Growth and Remodeling in the Bone Adaptation Theory

Abstract

Mechanical forces acting on bone during growth affect their final shape and strength. Mechanoregulation of bone growth is maybe recognized in embryogenesis, and also in the adaptation of the adult skeleton to changes in mechanical loading. By combining equations describing bone remodeling and growth with an iterative finite element analysis, a computational model to simulate the simultaneous effects of bone remodeling and bone growth was proposed in this study. Strain-energy density was assumed as mechanical stimulus of bone adaptation process. Negative exponential decay function over time was considered as metabolic growth rate. Based upon numeric results, the model shows an acceptable behavior under various modes of loading, e.g. altering in trabecula’s orientation or its thickness. This model also shows that by neglecting growth part in the adaptation model, a considerable error would result in both final density distribution and microstructural pattern of spongy bone.