Biomechanics of the Distal Radioulnar Joint During In Vivo Forearm Pronosupination

Background Ulnar variance (UV) and center of rotation (COR) location at the level of the distal radioulnar joint (DRUJ) change with forearm rotation. Nevertheless, these parameters have not been assessed dynamically during active in vivo pronosupination. This assessment could help us to improve our diagnosis and treatment strategies. Questions/purposes We sought to (1) mathematically model the UV change, and (2) determine the dynamic COR's location during active pronosupination. Methods We used biplanar videoradiography to study DRUJ during in vivo pronation and supination in nine healthy subjects. UV was defined as the proximal-distal distance of ulnar fovea with respect to the radial sigmoid notch, and COR was calculated using helical axis of motion parameters. The continuous change of UV was evaluated using a generalized linear regression model. Results A second-degree polynomial with R 2 of 0.85 was able to model the UV changes. Maximum negative UV occurred at 38.0 degrees supination and maximum positive UV occurred at maximum pronation. At maximum pronation, the COR was located 0.5 ± 1.8 mm ulnarly and 0.6 ± 0.8 mm volarly from the center of the ulnar fovea, while at maximum supination, the COR was located 0.2 ± 0.6 mm radially and 2.0 ± 0.5 mm volarly. Conclusion Changes in UV and volar translation of the COR are nonlinear at the DRUJ during pronosupination. Clinical Relevance Understanding the dynamic nature of UV as a function of pronosupination can help guide accurate evaluation and treatment of wrist pathology where the UV is an important consideration. The dynamic behavior of COR might be useful in designing DRUJ replacement implants to match the anatomical motion.

The Envelope of Physiological Motion of the First Carpometacarpal Joint

Much of the hand's functional capacity is due to the versatility of the motions at the thumb carpometacarpal (CMC) joint, which are presently incompletely defined. The aim of this study was to develop a mathematical model to completely describe the envelope of physiological motion of the thumb CMC joint and then to examine if there were differences in the kinematic envelope between women and men. In vivo kinematics of the first metacarpal with respect to the trapezium were computed from computed tomography (CT) volume images of 44 subjects (20M, 24F, 40.3 ± 17.7 yr) with no signs of CMC joint pathology. Kinematics of the first metacarpal were described with respect to the trapezium using helical axis of motion (HAM) variables and then modeled with discrete Fourier analysis. Each HAM variable was fit in a cyclic domain as a function of screw axis orientation in the trapezial articular plane; the RMSE of the fits was 14.5 deg, 1.4 mm, and 0.8 mm for the elevation, location, and translation, respectively. After normalizing for the larger bone size in men, no differences in the kinematic variables between sexes could be identified. Analysis of the kinematic data also revealed notable coupling of the primary rotations of the thumb with translation and internal and external rotations. This study advances our basic understanding of thumb CMC joint function and provides a complete description of the CMC joint for incorporation into future models of hand function. From a clinical perspective, our findings provide a basis for evaluating CMC pathology, especially the mechanically mediated aspects of osteoarthritis (OA), and should be used to inform artificial joint design, where accurate replication of kinematics is essential for long-term success.

On the Use of Quaternions to Characterize the Dynamics of a Vertebral Motion Segment

The characterization of the kinematics and kinetics of anatomical joints is a central problem in biomechanics. Traditionally, the kinematics of the joint has been characterized using the helical axis of motion (HAM) and Euler angles. The estimation of these quantities from optical measurements of landmarks placed on the anatomical parts constituting the joint is difficult and often fraught with error.

IN VIVO LOCATION OF JOINT CENTERS OF THE SHOULDER SYSTEM: GLENO-HUMERAL AND SCAPULO-THORACIC JOINTS BETWEEN TWO POSTURES DESCRIBING THE ARM ELEVATION IN THE PLANE OF SCAPULA USING TECHNIQUES BASED UPON BIPLANAR RADIOGRAPHY

In biomechanics, the knowledge of accurate location of a joint center is essential because equilibration of the external loads and muscular forces about the joint is performed about this specific point. This paper focuses on the location of centers of gleno-humeral joint and scapulo-thoracic joint in a subject moving their arm in the scapular plane with a magnitude of 120°. Biplanar radiography with successive exposures has been used locating anatomical axes of bones. Geometric models of bones were defined allowing access to bone morphology by superposing model projections onto X-ray imaged bone contours. Functional models were used so as to represent the behavior in motion of shoulder joints. These techniques allowed us to access to results describing the linear and angular relative displacements of the shoulder bones between two different postures. The gleno-humeral and scapulo-thoracic finite joint centers (F H and F S ) are first defined through the location of the corresponding helical axis of motion (HAM) moving the joint from positions occupied in initial and final postures. The gleno-humeral and scapulo-thoracic mean joint centers (M H and M S ) are then calculated using a new technique, which defines that each joint center has the point having the smallest migrations while moving continuously from initial to final postures. This allows for the analysis of the linear and angular clearances, which affect joint center migration. The whole continuous movement has been parsed into several steps to test the stability of the mean joint center throughout the motion.

A Method for Measuring Euler Rotation Angles and Helical Axis of Upper Arm Motion

Clinical observation suggests that shoulder pathologies such as rotator cuff disorders and shoulder instability may alter the normal shoulder rhythm or relative motions of the structures comprising the shoulder girdle. The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy of using a skin-mounted humeral cuff that could be used in vivo to determine Euler rotation angles and the helical axis of motion (HAM) during upper extremity movements. An in vitro model was used to compare the kinematics determined from the externally applied humeral cuff to the kinematics measured directly from the humerus. The upper extremities of five cadavers were moved through several humerus and forearm motion trials. Measurements from the humeral cuff were compared directly to the bone measurements for all trials to determine the accuracy of the Euler rotation angles. In evaluating the HAM, the orientation, location, and magnitude of rotation were compared either to the bone measurements or to the known rotational axis of the testing fixture. Euler rotation angles and the helical axis of motion determined by the measurements taken from the skin-mounted humeral cuff were very similar to those using the measurements from the bone-mounted sensor. The humeral cuff was shown to provide a viable, noninvasive method for determining the Euler rotation angles and helical axis of motion during 3-D humeral movements. The validation makes the humeral cuff a valuable tool for examining the effect of shoulder pathologies on the kinematics of the upper extremity.