Injury assessment via stress analysis of the human knee joint

Abstract

The largest articulation inside human body is the knee joint which is composed by hard components, soft tissues and surrounded muscles. The knee is a mobile hinge, and it permits flexion, extension, slight internal and external rotation of the leg. The knee joint is vulnerable to both sharp injury and chronic osteoarthritis. Once have been injured, the knee joint is not easily restored. This study employs separately the experimental measurement, reverse engineering and finite element analysis to investigate the dynamic characteristics of intricate knee joint. The three-dimensional geometric model of each component of knee joint includes hard tissues and soft tissues. The hard tissues have femur, tibia, fibula, patella and the soft tissues have meniscus, patellar ligament, medial and lateral collateral ligament, a pair of cruciate ligaments, etc. Then the model is imported into ANSYS software. Via modal, periodic excitation and impact analysis, the dynamic characteristics of each component and the whole knee model are received. The fundamental mode shapes, natural frequencies and stresses of all the components of knee are also obtained. These normal modes are essential when investigating the dynamic motion of the whole knee. The results show that after impact, the soft tissues have larger displacement than that of the hard tissues. Consequently, the fracture occurs when the stretch which is caused by external force excess ultimate strength of the component. It also explains why the athletes frequently injure the ligaments and tendons of the knee or ankle during the intensive exercise. Therefore, by reducing the motion of articulation, the professional player could not only reduce the generated internal stresses in the tissue but also consequently lessen the chance of injury.