Investigation of the Electric Field Distribution within an Electro- stimulated Microstructure of Cancellous Bone

Electrostimulative fields are used to accelerate bone regeneration after fractures and to treat bone diseases. Most of these systems have upper and lower thresholds for electromagnetic fields, which have proven to have a positive effect towards bone growth. The biomechanical background, however, is still subject of ongoing research. Using numerical simulation, this paper investigates the field distribution within the microstructure of cancellous bone, which is often regarded as a homogenous structure. Basing on microscopic computer tomography (μCT) a small sample of cancellous bone is separated in cortical bone and red bone marrow. In order to achieve an efficient, automatable procedure this is based on the absorption values of the μCT. The field distributions, which result from a specially implemented voltage source, suggest that bone generating cells are exposed to higher electric fields than expected.