Biomechanical effects on sacroiliac fusion for treating low back pain / 医用生物力学

ABSTRACT

Objective Based on the finite element method, both sacroiliac fusion and sacroiliac contact models were built to compare the biomechanical differences between the two models and to explore the biomechanical mechanism in the treatment of low back pain by sacroiliac fusion. Methods Two pelvic finite element models were constructed, including the pelvic ring, sacrum, part of the femur, ligaments, cartilage and joint contact. The sacroiliac joints were set to be contact in one model and fusion in the other, respectively. Differences in mechanical conduction on the pelvic ring and the stress on the sacroiliac cartilage under 500 N load between the two models were explored. Results For the fusion model, stresses and displacement on the sacroiliac joint were significantly lower than that of the contact model, especially on the sacroiliac cartilage, where the displacement was reduced by 261% from 0.83 mm to 0.23 mm, and the stresses reduced by 32% from 6.6 MPa to 5.0 MPa. However, the transfer of stress on the pelvic ring was relatively more concentrated in the fusion model. Conclusions Sacroiliac fusion may provide better therapeutic effects on the treatment of low back pain, but the risk of disc herniation and femoral head necrosis must be assessed seriously in advance.