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The cartilaginous and osseous geometry of the femoral trochlear groove

  • Knee
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Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy Aims and scope

Abstract

Photography was used to study the geometry of the cartilaginous and osseous contours of the distal femur and the orientation of the trochlear groove in 9 fresh-frozen and 24 embalmed knees. The sulcus angle (146.1°±5.5°) decreased from 0° to 50° of femoral flexion then increased afterwards. The maximum slope of the lateral femoral condyle (20.2°±5.2°) also decreased with flexion. Both the sulcus angle (p =0.0007) and maximum slope (p =0.0001) were larger at 0° than they were for 60° cartilaginous surfaces. The lateral femoral condylar height decreased, whilst the medial femoral condylar height increased as the flexion increased. The femoral groove was midway between the two femoral epicondyles (49.5±3.9%), but deviated laterally as the flexion angle increased. The groove axis deviated distally and laterally from the femoral anatomical axis for both cartilaginous and bony surfaces, and the angle between the groove and anatomical axes was similar for both cartilaginous (19.1°) and osseous (16.8°) surfaces. Articular cartilage is not well represented on radiography yet it had a significant effect on the distal femoral geometry, and should be taken into account when evaluating the patellofemoral joint.

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Acknowledgements

Y.-F.S. was supported by a scholarship from the Ministry of Education, Taiwan. A.M.J.B. is supported by the Arthritis Research Campaign. We also thank Dr. D. Watt and Dr. M. Guan of the Anatomy Facility at Charing Cross Hospital, Imperial College School of Medicine for their help.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Imperial College, London, UK

    Yi-Fen Shih

  2. Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College, London, UK

    Anthony M. J. Bull

  3. Biomechanics Section, Mechanical Engineering Department, Room 638, Mechanical Engineering Building, South Kensington Campus, Imperial College, London, SW7 2AZ, UK

    Andrew A. Amis

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  1. Yi-Fen Shih
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Correspondence to Andrew A. Amis.

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Shih, YF., Bull, A.M.J. & Amis, A.A. The cartilaginous and osseous geometry of the femoral trochlear groove. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 12, 300–306 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-003-0414-3

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