A Visualization Tool to convey Quantitative in vivo, 3D Knee Joint Kinematics

The overall goal of the virtual functional anatomy (VFA) project is to fill the important knowledge gap that exists in the relationship between functional movement limitations and impaired joint structure or function. Thus, a set of imaging-based post-processing tools is under development to enable dynamic and static magnetic resonance image (MRI) data to be merged. These tools will provide accurate quantification and visualization of 3D static and dynamic properties of musculoskeletal anatomy (i.e. skeletal kinematics, tendon and ligament strain, muscle force, cartilage contact). The current focus is to apply the six-degree of freedom joint kinematics to subject specific models and to quantify dynamic musculoskeletal properties, such as tendon moment arm, muscle moment arms, joint cartilage contact and tendon strain. To date, these tools have been used to study joint function of healthy and impaired (e.g. Cerebral Palsy, ACL rupture and patellar tracking syndrome) joint structures under simulated conditions experienced during activities of daily living.