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Assessing the bilateral geometrical differences of the tibia--are they the same?
1Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, QLD 4059, Australia.
Medical Engineering & Physics
|October 2, 2014
Summary
Contralateral bone use in medicine often assumes insignificant bilateral differences. This study developed a method to quantify tibial 3D surface asymmetries, finding subchondral bone differences suitable for surgical reference.
Area of Science:
- Orthopedic surgery
- Biomedical engineering
- Anatomical research
Background:
- Contralateral bones are frequently utilized in medical applications, with an underlying assumption of negligible bilateral differences.
- Previous research has primarily focused on limited distance measurements, leaving a gap in understanding comprehensive 3D surface asymmetries between contralateral bones.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a robust methodology for quantifying geometrical asymmetries between left and right tibiae.
- To assess the viability of using the contralateral tibia as an equivalent anatomical reference in medical applications.
Main Methods:
- 3D bone models were generated from computed tomography (CT) scans of seven pairs of tibiae.
- A total of 34 variables, encompassing both 2D and 3D measurements, were meticulously collected from diverse anatomical regions.
Main Results:
- While 2D measurements and specific surface areas (lateral plateau, distal subchondral bone) exhibited statistically insignificant differences (p > 0.05), other surface measurements showed significant variations (p < 0.05).
- Crucially, bilateral differences in the subchondral bone surfaces were found to be less than 0.3mm.
Conclusions:
- The findings suggest that the contralateral tibia can serve as a reliable reference, particularly in surgical contexts like articular reconstructions, due to minimal subchondral bone surface discrepancies.
- The developed quantification method holds potential for transferability to other studies requiring precise assessment of bone bilateral asymmetries.
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