An anthropometric study of the radial head: implications in the design of a prosthesis.
The dimensions of the native radial head were measured in 28 cadaveric upper extremities and radiographs of the contralateral elbows of 40 patients who had received a radial head replacement. The mean difference between the maximum and minimum radial head diameters was 1.7 +/- 0.7 mm (range, 0.12-3.27 mm). This variability suggests that although the native radial head is not circular, it does not have a consistently elliptic shape. The native radial head also is variably offset from the axis of the neck (4.2 +/- 2.5 mm), suggesting that a radial head hemiarthroplasty that precisely replicates normal anatomy would be difficult to achieve. There was a poor correlation between the radial head diameter and the medullary canal of the radial neck, suggesting that a modular implant system should be considered.
King
G J
GJ
Department of Medical Biophysics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Western Ontario, Canada.
Zarzour
Z D
ZD
Patterson
S D
SD
Johnson
J A
JA
D000368:Aged; D000886:Anthropometry; D004551:Elbow Joint / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007595:Joint Prosthesis; D008875:Middle Aged; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D011859:Radiography; D011884:Radius / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging