Is modular control related to functional outcomes in individuals with knee osteoarthritis and following total knee arthroplasty?

Background: Individuals who undergo total knee arthroplasty (TKA) for treatment of knee osteoarthritis often experience suboptimal outcomes. Investigation of neuromuscular control strategies in these individuals may reveal factors that contribute to these functional deficits. The purpose of this pilot study was to determine the relationship between patient function and modular control during gait before and after TKA.

Discover your potential: The influence of kinematics on a muscle's ability to contribute to the sit-to-stand transfer.

Existing methods for estimating how individual muscles contribute to a movement require extensive time and experimental resources. In this study we developed an efficient method for determining how changes to lower extremity joint kinematics affect the potential of individual muscles to contribute to whole-body center-of-mass vertical (support) and anteroposterior (progression) accelerations. A 4-link 2-dimensional model was used to assess the effect of kinematic changes on muscle function.

Effects of age and knee osteoarthritis on the modular control of walking: A pilot study.

Background: Older adults and individuals with knee osteoarthritis (KOA) often exhibit reduced locomotor function and altered muscle activity. Identifying age- and KOA-related changes to the modular control of gait may provide insight into the neurological mechanisms underlying reduced walking performance in these populations. The purpose of this pilot study was to determine if the modular control of walking differs between younger and older adults without KOA and adults with end-stage KOA.

Effects of Optimization Technique on Simulated Muscle Activations and Forces.

Two optimization techniques, static optimization (SO) and computed muscle control (CMC), are often used in OpenSim to estimate the muscle activations and forces responsible for movement. Although differences between SO and CMC muscle function have been reported, the accuracy of each technique and the combined effect of optimization and model choice on simulated muscle function is unclear. The purpose of this study was to quantitatively compare the SO and CMC estimates of muscle activations and forces during gait with the experimental data in the Gait2392 and Full Body Running models.

What are the effects of simulated muscle weakness on the sit-to-stand transfer?

Populations with lower extremity muscle weakness have difficulty performing the sit-to-stand (STS) transfer. The degree of weakness that can be tolerated before compromising the ability to perform this task is unknown. Using dynamic simulations, we investigated the effects of weakness before changes in kinematics/kinetics would be required.

Perceived Instability Is Associated With Strength and Pain, Not Frontal Knee Laxity, in Patients With Advanced Knee Osteoarthritis.

Background: Increased varus/valgus laxity and perceived knee instability are independently associated with poor outcomes in people with knee osteoarthritis. However, the relationship between laxity and perceived instability is unclear.

Objective: To assess whether knee extensor strength, pain, and knee laxity are related to perceived knee instability in patients with advanced knee osteoarthritis.

Medially-stabilized total knee arthroplasty does not alter knee laxity and balance in cadaveric knees.

Instability after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) can lead to suboptimal outcomes and revision surgery. Medially-stabilized implants aim to more closely replicate normal knee motion than other implants following TKA, but no study has investigated knee laxity (motion under applied loads) and balance (i.e.

Forces Generated by Vastus Lateralis and Vastus Medialis Decrease with Increasing Stair Descent Speed.

Stair descent (SD) is a common, difficult task for populations who are elderly or have orthopaedic pathologies. Joint torques of young, healthy populations during SD increase at the hip and ankle with increasing speed but not at the knee, contrasting torque patterns during gait. To better understand the sources of the knee torque pattern, we used dynamic simulations to estimate knee muscle forces and how they modulate center of mass (COM) acceleration across SD speeds (slow, self-selected, and fast) in young, healthy adults.

Interpreting Musculoskeletal Models and Dynamic Simulations: Causes and Effects of Differences Between Models.

With more than 29,000 OpenSim users, several musculoskeletal models with varying levels of complexity are available to study human gait. However, how different model parameters affect estimated joint and muscle function between models is not fully understood. The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of four OpenSim models (Gait2392, Lower Limb Model 2010, Full-Body OpenSim Model, and Full Body Model 2016) on gait mechanics and estimates of muscle forces and activations.

Assessing the effect of football play on knee articular cartilage using delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage (dGEMRIC).

The prevalence of cartilage lesions is much higher in football athletes than in the general population. Delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage (dGEMRIC) has been shown to quantify regional variations of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) concentrations which is an indicator of early cartilage degeneration. The goal of this study is to determine whether dGEMRIC can be used to assess the influence in cartilage GAG concentration due to college level football play.

Tibiofemoral Osteoarthritis and Varus-Valgus Laxity.

The purpose of this study was to systematically review and synthesize the literature measuring varus-valgus laxity in individuals with tibiofemoral osteoarthritis (OA). Specifically, we aimed to identify varus-valgus laxity differences between persons with OA and controls, by radiographic disease severity, by frontal plane knee alignment, and by sex. We also aimed to identify if there was a relationship between varus-valgus laxity and clinical performance and self-reported function.

Relationships between varus-valgus laxity of the severely osteoarthritic knee and gait, instability, clinical performance, and function.

Increased varus-valgus laxity has been reported in individuals with knee osteoarthritis (OA) compared to controls. However, the majority of previous investigations may not report truly passive joint laxity, as their tests have been performed on conscious participants who could be guarding against motion with muscle contraction during laxity evaluation. The purpose of this study was to investigate how a measure of passive knee laxity, recorded when the participant is under anesthesia, is related to varus-valgus excursion during gait, clinical measures of performance, perceived instability, and self-reported function in participants with severe knee OA.

Age-Related Differences in Gait Kinematics, Kinetics, and Muscle Function: A Principal Component Analysis.

Age-related increased hip extensor recruitment during gait is a proposed compensation strategy for reduced ankle power generation and may indicate a distal-to-proximal shift in muscle function with age. Extending beyond joint level analyses, identifying age-related changes at the muscle level could capture more closely the underlying mechanisms responsible for movement. The purpose of this study was to characterize and compare muscle forces and induced accelerations during gait in healthy older adults with those of young adults.

Muscle co-contraction during gait in individuals with articular cartilage defects in the knee.

Increased muscle co-contraction during gait is common in individuals with knee pathology, and worrisome as it is known to amplify tibiofemoral compressive forces. While knees with articular cartilage defects (ACD) are more vulnerable to compressive forces, muscle co-contraction has never been reported in this population. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the extent to which individuals with ACDs in the knee demonstrate elevated quadriceps to hamstrings muscle co-contraction on the involved limb during gait compared to the uninvolved limb and to healthy controls.

Muscle Forces and Their Contributions to Vertical and Horizontal Acceleration of the Center of Mass During Sit-to-Stand Transfer in Young, Healthy Adults.

Sit-to-stand transfer is a common task that is challenging for older adults and others with musculoskeletal impairments. Associated joint torques and muscle activations have been analyzed two-dimensionally, neglecting possible three-dimensional (3D) compensatory movements in those who struggle with sit-to-stand transfer. Furthermore, how muscles accelerate an individual up and off the chair remains unclear; such knowledge could inform rehabilitation strategies.

Tibiofemoral joint subchondral surface conformity: Individual variability with race and sex-specific trends.

Background: Femoral and tibial subchondral surface morphology has been extensively studied to aid in anatomically correct total knee arthroplasty (TKA) implant design. Emphasis has been placed on shape variations in individual bones, and person-to-person variability in joint conformity has been overlooked. The purpose of this study is to 1) determine individual variability in key measures of tibiofemoral joint conformity, and 2) determine whether variability differs by sex or race.

Surgical Navigation Improves the Precision and Accuracy of Tibial Component Alignment in Canine Total Knee Replacement.

Objective: The goal of this study was to determine whether computer-assisted surgical navigation improves the accuracy of tibial component alignment in canine total knee replacement (TKR).

Study Design: Retrospective radiographic review and prospective ex vivo study.

Sample Population: Canine TKR radiographs (n = 17 sets) and canine cadaveric stifles (n = 12).

Estimating patient-specific soft-tissue properties in a TKA knee.

Surgical technique is one factor that has been identified as critical to success of total knee arthroplasty. Researchers have shown that computer simulations can aid in determining how decisions in the operating room generally affect post-operative outcomes. However, to use simulations to make clinically relevant predictions about knee forces and motions for a specific total knee patient, patient-specific models are needed.

Musculoskeletal modelling of an ostrich (Struthio camelus) pelvic limb: influence of limb orientation on muscular capacity during locomotion.

We developed a three-dimensional, biomechanical computer model of the 36 major pelvic limb muscle groups in an ostrich (Struthio camelus) to investigate muscle function in this, the largest of extant birds and model organism for many studies of locomotor mechanics, body size, anatomy and evolution. Combined with experimental data, we use this model to test two main hypotheses. We first query whether ostriches use limb orientations (joint angles) that optimize the moment-generating capacities of their muscles during walking or running.

Knee joint loading during lineman-specific movements in American football players.

Linemen are at high risk for knee cartilage injuries and osteoarthritis. High-intensity movements from squatting positions (eg, 3-point stance) may produce high joint loads, increasing the risk for cartilage damage. We hypothesized that knee moments and joint reaction forces during lineman-specific activities would be greater than during walking or jogging.

Impact of lesion location on the progression of osteoarthritis in a rat knee model.

To investigate how surgically created acute full-thickness cartilage defects of similar size and location created on the medial versus lateral femoral condyle influence progression of spontaneous cartilage lesions in a rat model. Full-thickness cartilage defects of 1 mm were surgically created on the medial or lateral femoral condyles on the right leg of 20 rats (n = 10/group). Ten rats served as controls.

Quadriceps femoris strength and sagittal-plane knee biomechanics during stair ascent in individuals with articular cartilage defects in the knee.

Context: Few objective data are available regarding strength and movement patterns in individuals with articular cartilage defects (ACDs) of the knee.

Objectives: To test the following hypotheses: (1) The involved limb of individuals with ACDs would demonstrate lower peak knee-flexion angle, peak internal knee-extension moment, and peak vertical ground-reaction force (vGRF) than the contralateral limb and healthy controls. (2) On the involved limb of individuals with ACDs, quadriceps femoris strength would positively correlate with peak knee-flexion angle, peak internal knee-extension moment, and peak vGRF.

Evidence for joint moment asymmetry in healthy populations during gait.

The purpose of this study was to determine the presence and prevalence of asymmetry in lower extremity joint moments within and across healthy populations during overground walking. Bilateral gait data from several studies performed at two institutions were pooled from 182 healthy, pain-free subjects. Four distinct populations were identified based on age, activity level and body mass index.

Effect of chondral defect size, shape, and location on MRI diagnostic performance in the porcine knee.

The purpose of this study was to determine the sensitivity and positive predictive value of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the identification of full-thickness articular cartilage defects in the porcine knee. Seventy-two full-thickness chondral defects (small or large; circular, oval, or triangular) were created in 12 porcine knees. The authors used 3.