Journal of biomechanical engineering
-
Comparative Study
A finite element model of the human knee joint for the study of tibio-femoral contact.
As a step towards developing a finite element model of the knee that can be used to study how the variables associated with a meniscal replacement affect tibio-femoral contact, the goals of this study were 1) to develop a geometrically accurate three-dimensional solid model of the knee joint with special attention given to the menisci and articular cartilage, 2) to determine to what extent bony deformations affect contact behavior, and 3) to determine whether constraining rotations other than flexion/extension affects the contact behavior of the joint during compressive loading. The model included both the cortical and trabecular bone of the femur and tibia, articular cartilage of the femoral condyles and tibial plateau, both the medial and lateral menisci with their horn attachments, the transverse ligament, the anterior cruciate ligament, and the medial collateral ligament. The solid models for the menisci and articular cartilage were created from surface scans provided by a noncontacting, laser-based, three-dimensional coordinate digitizing system with an root mean squared error (RMSE) of less than 8 microns. ⋯ The largest difference was in the maximum pressure. Among the principal conclusions of the study are that accurate finite element solutions of tibio-femoral contact behavior can be obtained by treating the bones as rigid. However, unrealistic constraints on rotations other than flexion/extension can result in relatively large errors in contact variables.