Optimizing Surgical Planning for Patellar Instability Pathologies using Computational Modeling

Patellar instability is a relatively common orthopedic condition characterized by a patellar dislocation event followed by immediate relocation, while all joint surfaces remain in contact. Several pathologies can lead to patellar instability, with the most prominent being an excessive tibial tubercle-trochlear groove measurement. Current treatments focus on surgical interventions which rely almost solely on the expertise of the acting physician, promoting a subjective surgical planning process and contributing to a high redislocation incidence. With recent advances in technology, biomechanical computational modeling demonstrates the potential to objectively determine the optimal surgical plan on a clinical timeline. Our group sought to create a patient-personalized model capable of simulating possible surgeries to determine the best plan of action, optimizing surgical outcomes and reducing redislocation rates. This report describes the creation of a computational model of a healthy, baseline patient in order to run kinematic simulations, the first step towards demonstrating proof of this concept and inserting computational biomechanical modeling into orthopedic clinics.