Fracture tolerance of the patellofemoral joint in frontal knee impacts of 75 and 35 year-old males

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Salzar, R. S.¹; Lievers, W. B.¹; Frimenko, R. E.¹; Seamon, J. B.²; Keller, T. C.²; Subit, D. L.¹; Gochenour, T. H.¹; Sochor, M.¹; Crandall, J. R.¹

Fracture tolerance of the patellofemoral joint in frontal knee impacts of 75 and 35 year-old males

Int J Crashworthiness. August 2011;16(4):397-409

Affiliations

¹Center for Applied Biomechanics, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA

²School of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
Abstract and keywords

This study investigates the peak force and force at fracture in the patella complex from an axial load similar to that of a knee bolster impact during a frontal automobile collision. A rigid impactor and a 689 kPa padded impactor are used to compare the mechanical behaviour of ‘older’ (mean = 74 years) and ‘younger’ (35 years) post-mortem human surrogate (PMHS) populations.Age-related differences in peak forces and fracture patternswere observed using both impactors, andwe hypothesise that the stiffer response of the patella complex in the 74-year-old PHMS group is responsible for these differences. Furthermore, four fracture detection methods (acoustic sensors, strain gauges, piezo-electric sensors and accelerometers) were investigated; the acoustic sensor was found to give the most useful crack detection data. These experimental results can assist numerical modelling and design efforts aimed at reducing the incidence and severity of automotive-related knee injuries.

Keywords: patella; intrusion; fracture; acoustic; PZT
Links

DOI: 10.1080/13588265.2011.596676

WoS: 000296147400006
History

Received: 2010-07-23

Revised: 2011-06-10

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Cited By (1)

Year	Entry
2013	Subit D, Arregui C, Salzar R, Crandall J. Pediatric, adult and elderly bone material properties. In: Proceedings of the 2013 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 11-13, 2013; Gothenburg, Sweden.760-769.