Femoral mechanics, mobility, and finite element analysis

Abstract

Traditional analyses of long bone morphology, e.g., applying beam theory to imaged cross sections of bone or investigating diaphyseal curvature, examine the effect of skeletal variables on structural integrity separately, an approach that does not incorporate information on the entire bone. Finite element analysis allows exploration of the structural integrity of complete bones under specific loading conditions, providing a more detailed picture of precisely how morphological differences affect a bone's strength and patterns of stress and strain. Finite element analysis also allows complex variables such as differences in joint configurations between species to be modeled. Finite element models further allow the examination of how bones behave during simulations of particular activities, at various magnitudes of loading, and at different angles of excursion. Here I provide an overview of finite element analysis and examine how it contributes to studies of mobility using a case study of a human femur.