Human patellar articular proportions: recent and Pleistocene patterns

Abstract

The degrees of mediolateral asymmetry of the patellar articular facet, as well as the median and lateral articular angles of the facet, were compared across samples of recent humans and of Pleistocene archaic and modern fossil humans. All samples exhibit considerable variability in these patellar proportions. The articular angles are similar across the different samples, but there is a trend towards decreasing lateral angles with decreasing robusticity. The archaic humans exhibit significantly more symmetry of the medial and lateral facets than do any of the recent human samples. However, given the variability in medial versus lateral patellofemoral contact forces documented for extant humans and the roles of the distal oblique portions of vastus medialis and vastus lateralis in patellar stabilisation, it is unclear to what extent this variation in patellar articular proportions may affect knee kinesiology. The contrasts may be related to different levels of patellar stability and\or musculoskeletal hypertrophy, but they appear unlikely to have affected primary knee function.

Sex determination by discriminant analysis: an evaluation of the reliability of patella measurements

“…However, from a statistical point of view, evidence of asymmetry was negligible. This coincides with other studies [11]. (c) Osteometric data is foremost population-specific.…”

“…Accordingly, Wiberg and Baumgartl differentiated six types of patella facet configurations according to the size and form of the medial and lateral halves (for a review see [13]). It is thus highly probable that the observed differences are a function of biomechanical stresses, even though the exact nature of these forces remains unclear [11,14]. As can be deduced from Table 1, the medial and lateral facies demonstrate great interpersonal variation in size.…”

Malocclusion in Early Anatomically Modern Human: A Reflection on the Etiology of Modern Dental Misalignment

“…A detailed osteological analysis of Qafzeh 9, with an emphasis on the cranium, was conducted by Vandermeersch [ 19 ]. Later studies on Qafzeh 9’s skeleton include, among others, analysis of the pelvis [ 25 ], femur [ 27 ], patella [ 28 ], hands [ 29 ], feet [ 30 ], mandible [ 31 - 33 ] and teeth [ 34 , 35 ].…”

Brief communication: Paleopathology of the Kiik‐Koba 1 Neandertal

“…2). There is no subchondral porosity, and the facets are normally slightly concave with a larger lateral than medial facet [unlike many archaic Homo patellae (Carretero et al, 1999;Trinkaus, 2000)], indicating normal knee function.…”