Femoral version and neck shaft angle

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Medical Imaging
• Anatomy

Background:

• Femoral anteversion is a critical parameter in assessing hip joint biomechanics.
• Accurate measurement of femoral anteversion is essential for diagnosing and managing various orthopedic conditions.
• Existing measurement techniques have limitations, necessitating evaluation of alternative methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the accuracy and reproducibility of Kingsley-Olmsted method, computed tomography (CT) scan, and ultrasound for measuring femoral anteversion.
• To define an anterior flat plane for improved anteversion measurement in specific patient populations.
• To assess the correlation between physical, ultrasound, and CT-based measurements of femoral anteversion.

Main Methods:

• Measurements were performed on 24 unpaired, dry femurs using the Kingsley-Olmsted method.
• Computed tomography (CT) scans were utilized to measure femoral anteversion of the same specimens.
• Ultrasound was employed to measure femoral anteversion, with an anterior flat plane defined for specific cases.

Main Results:

• CT scan measurements were approximately 5 degrees less than the Kingsley-Olmsted method.
• Ultrasound measurements were approximately 5 degrees higher than the Kingsley-Olmsted method.
• Both CT scan and ultrasound measurements demonstrated good reproducibility and correlated well with the Kingsley-Olmsted method, despite a consistent 10-degree difference between them.

Conclusions:

• Ultrasound and CT scans are reproducible methods for measuring femoral anteversion.
• Ultrasound measurements tend to yield values approximately 10 degrees higher than CT scans.
• The defined anterior flat plane may aid in anteversion measurement for patients with high neck shaft angles.