Desdicioglu, Kadir Izmir Katip Çelebi University - Medical Faculty - Department of Anatomy, Turkey , Kocabiyik, Necdet Gulhane Military Medical Academy (GATA) - Department of Anatomy, Turkey , Elevli, Levent Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University - Medical Faculty - Department of Anatomy, Turkey , Ozan, Hasan Gülhane Military Medical Academy (GATA) - Department of Anatomy, TURKEY

Morphometry of the patellar ligament in human fetuses

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Objective: To gather detailed morphometric data of the patellar ligament in human fetuses. Method: Present study is carried out on 32 human fetuses (18 males, 14 females) aged 18 32 weeks of gestation with no gross pathology or anomaly. Following the general external measurements of the fetuses each knee region were dissected. The relationships between the patellar ligament and surrounding structures and its localization were determined. Morphometric data on length, width, thickness and diameters were gathered. Results: Means and standard deviations of all parameters were calculated for each gestational week. There were significant relations between measured parameters and gestational age (p 0.001). There were no sex differences in parameters (p 0.05). All data were compared with previous studies and discussed. Conclusion: Data obtained in this study will contribute to other studies carried out in the areas of obstetrics, perinatology, forensic medicine and fetal pathology, aimed at identifying anomalies, pathologies and variations of the patellar ligament and treatment of such cases.

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Patellar ligament , morphometry , human fetus , knee , anatomy

Medical Journal Of Suleyman Demirel University

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