Background: Accurately measuring in-vivo motion of the knee's patellofemoral (PF) joint is challenging. Conventional measurement techniques have largely been unable to accurately measure three-dimensional, in-vivo motion of the patella during dynamic activities. The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy of a new model-based technique for measuring PF joint motion.
Rotator cuff tears are a common injury that affect a significant percentage of the population over age 60. Although it is widely believed that the rotator cuff's primary function is to stabilize the humerus against the glenoid during shoulder motion, accurately measuring the three-dimensional (3D) motion of the shoulder's glenohumeral joint under in-vivo conditions has been a challenging endeavor. In particular, conventional motion measurement techniques have frequently been limited to static or two-dimensional (2D) analyses, and have suffered from limited or unknown in-vivo accuracy. We have recently developed and validated a new model-based tracking technique that is capable of accurately measuring the 3D position and orientation of the scapula and humerus from biplane x-ray images. Herein we demonstrate the in-vivo application of this technique for accurately measuring glenohumeral joint translations during shoulder motion in the repaired and contralateral shoulders of patients following rotator cuff repair. Five male subjects were tested at 3−4 months following arthroscopic rotator cuff repair. Superior-inferior humeral translation was measured during elevation, and anterior-posterior humeral translation was measured during external rotation in both the repaired and contralateral shoulders. The data failed to detect statistically significant differences between the repaired and contralateral shoulders in superior-inferior translation (p=0.74) or anterior-posterior translation (p=0.77). The measurement technique overcomes the limitations of conventional motion measurement techniques by providing accurate, 3D, in-vivo measures of glenohumeral joint motion during dynamic activities. On-going research is using this technique to assess the effects of conservative and surgical treatment of rotator cuff tears.
Glenoid inclination has been associated with rotator cuff tears and superior humeral translation, but the relationship between glenoid inclination and superior humeral translation has not been assessed in-vivo. The objective of this study was to compare glenoid inclination between repaired and contralateral shoulders of unilateral rotator cuff repair patients. As a secondary analysis, we assessed the relationship between glenoid inclination and in-vivo superior humeral translation. Glenoid inclination was measured from patient-specific, CT-based bone models. Glenohumeral joint motion was measured from biplane x-ray images collected during coronal-plane abduction of 21 rotator cuff repair patients. Glenoid inclination was significantly lower for the rotator cuff tear shoulders (90.7°) than the asymptomatic, contralateral shoulders (92.3°, p=0.04). There was no significant correlation between increased glenoid inclination and superior/inferior translation of the uninjured shoulder (p>0.30). This study failed to support the theory that glenoid inclination is responsible for superior humeral translation and the development of subacromial impingement.
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