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Changes in Functional Meniscal Morphology During Skeletal Growth and Maturation
Shankar G Kaushal1, Samuel C Barnett1, Shayan Hosseinzadeh1
1Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine
|March 27, 2024
Summary
Meniscal dimensions and morphology change during skeletal growth, with distinct patterns in boys versus girls. These changes correlate with the curvature of the femoral condyles, impacting knee anatomy.
Area of Science:
- Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
- Radiology
- Developmental Anatomy
Background:
- Understanding meniscal morphology development during skeletal growth is limited.
- The relationship between meniscal anatomy and surrounding bone structures during maturation is not well-established.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate age-related changes in meniscal dimensions and morphology in children and adolescents.
- To compare these developmental trends between boys and girls.
- To determine the correlation between meniscal morphology and femoral condyle curvature.
Main Methods:
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of 269 knees (ages 3-18) without prior injury or skeletal abnormalities were analyzed.
- Meniscal dimensions and morphology were measured and normalized to tibial plateau width or expressed as ratios.
- Statistical analyses included linear regression and analysis of variance to assess age, sex, and femoral condyle curvature effects.
Main Results:
- Meniscal length, width, horn distance, cross-sectional area (CSA), and height increased with age in both sexes.
- Significant age-related morphological changes were observed, with some differences between boys and girls in normalized dimensions and CSA.
- Meniscal morphology, including width-to-length ratio and horn distance, correlated significantly with femoral condyle curvature after adjusting for age and sex.
Conclusions:
- Meniscal dimensions and morphology undergo significant age-related changes during skeletal growth and maturation.
- These developmental trends exhibit distinct patterns between boys and girls.
- Meniscal geometry is associated with the curvature of the femoral condyles, highlighting a relationship between soft tissue and bone development.
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