Sharif Digital Repository

A safe rehabilitation exercise for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries needs to be compatible with the normal knee arthrokinematics to avoid abnormal loading on the joint structures. The objective of this study was to measure the amount of the anterior tibial translation (ATT) of the ACL-deficient knees during selective open and closed kinetic chain exercises. The intact and injured knees of fourteen male subjects with unilateral ACL injury were imaged using uniplanar fluoroscopy, while the subjects performed forward lunge and unloaded/loaded open kinetic knee extension exercises. The ATTs were measured from fluoroscopic images, as the distance between the tibial and femoral reference... 

We simulated the knee arthrometry test to obtain a deeper understanding of the joint's stability behavior and interpret the arthrometric results more effectively. A 2D sagittal plane finite element model of the lower limb in the standard configuration of knee arthrometry was developed using ANSYS APDL. A detailed model of the knee joint was considered including the femoral articulating contour represented by an ellipse, the tibial plateau represented by a circular arc, and four major knee ligaments and their individual bundles represented by linear and nonlinear tensile springs. A deformable layer of articular cartilage was also considered over the tibial plateau to simulate the bones... 

Patellar lateral stability was studied using a 2D transverse plane model with deformable articular surfaces. Quadriceps muscles and patellar tendon were considered as strings with predefined forces and lateral and medial retinaculum as tensile springs. Deformation behavior of articular cartilage was modeled by a set of compression springs perpendicular to articular surfaces, based on rigid body spring model method (RBSM). Patellar lateral stability was investigated using restraining force method (the external force required to cause up to 10 mm lateral displacement on patella). The results were in good agreement with experimental reports for normal joint, vastus lateralis and vastus medialis... 

Background: Studying the kinematics of the ACL deficient (ACLD) knees, during different physiological activities and muscle contraction patterns, can improve our understanding of the joint's altered biomechanics due to ACL deficiency as well as the efficacy and safety of the rehabilitations exercises. Methods: Twenty-five male volunteers, including 11 normal and 14 unilateral ACLD subjects, participated in this study. The kinematics of the injured knees of the ACLD subjects was compared with their intact knees and the healthy group during passive flexion and isometric leg press with the knees flexed from full extension to 45° flexion, with 15° intervals. An accurate registration algorithm... 

A new approach, based on Adaptive-Network-based Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS), is presented for the classification of arthrometric data of normal/ACL-ruptured knees, considering the insufficiency of existing criteria. An ANFIS classifier was developed and tested on a total of 4800 arthrometric data points collected from 40 normal and 40 injured subjects. The system consisted of 5 layers and 8 rules, based on the results of subtractive data clustering, and trained using the hybrid algorithm method. The performance of the system was evaluated in four runs, in the framework of a 4-fold cross validation algorithm. The results indicated a definite correct diagnosis for typical injured and normal... 

Although the application of nonlinear tools including recurrence quantification analysis (RQA) has increasingly grown in the recent years especially in balance-disordered populations, there have been few studies which determine their measurement properties. Therefore, a methodological study was performed to estimate the intersession and intrasession reliability of some dynamic features provided by RQA for nonlinear analysis of center of pressure (COP) signals recorded during quiet standing in a sample of patients with musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) including low back pain (LBP), anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and functional ankle instability (FAI). The subjects completed postural...