Nagahori Hiraku, Ho Kai-Yu
Department of Physical Therapy, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, United States.
Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States.
Front Sports Act Living. 2025 May 8;7:1575115. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2025.1575115. eCollection 2025.
The relationship between patellofemoral cartilage morphology and knee external rotation (KER), one of the possible factors increasing patellar cartilage stress, has been rarely explored in individuals with and without patellofemoral pain (PFP). Ten individuals with PFP and 10 pain-free controls, matched for age, weight, height, and activity level, participated. Patellar cartilage morphology was assessed using 3-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging. Lower extremity kinematics during bilateral squatting at 45° of knee flexion were captured using a 3-dimensional motion capture system. Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficients were used to assess the associations between cartilage thickness (medial, lateral, and total) and peak KER, along with other peak joint angles across the three planes. Across all participants, there were significantly moderate correlations between medial cartilage thickness and KER ( = -0.48, = 0.03), and total cartilage thickness and KER ( = -0.47, = 0.35). In the PFP group, there was a significantly large correlation between medial cartilage thickness and KER ( = -0.66, = 0.03). In the control group, there was a significant very large correlation between lateral cartilage thickness and KER ( = -0.79, = 0.01) and a significant very large correlation between total cartilage thickness and KER ( = -0.75, = 0.01). The findings suggest that thinner patellar cartilage is associated with increased KER during bilateral squatting in persons with and without PFP. Since our study focused on a double-limb activity, which may require less KER, future research should examine its impact on cartilage morphology during single-limb activities.
髌股关节软骨形态与膝关节外旋（KER）之间的关系，是增加髌软骨应力的可能因素之一，在有和没有髌股关节疼痛（PFP）的个体中很少被研究。10名患有PFP的个体和10名年龄、体重、身高和活动水平相匹配的无疼痛对照者参与了研究。使用3特斯拉磁共振成像评估髌软骨形态。在膝关节屈曲45°的双侧深蹲过程中，使用三维运动捕捉系统记录下肢运动学数据。使用Pearson和Spearman相关系数评估软骨厚度（内侧、外侧和总厚度）与峰值KER之间的关联，以及三个平面上的其他峰值关节角度之间的关联。在所有参与者中，内侧软骨厚度与KER之间存在显著的中度相关性（r = -0.48，p = 0.03），总软骨厚度与KER之间也存在显著的中度相关性（r = -0.47，p = 0.35）。在PFP组中，内侧软骨厚度与KER之间存在显著的强相关性（r = -0.66，p = 0.03）。在对照组中，外侧软骨厚度与KER之间存在显著的极强相关性（r = -0.79，p = 0.01），总软骨厚度与KER之间也存在显著的极强相关性（r = -0.75，p = 0.01）。研究结果表明，无论有无PFP，在双侧深蹲过程中，较薄的髌软骨与增加的KER相关。由于我们的研究集中在双下肢活动，这可能需要较少的KER，未来的研究应检查其对单下肢活动期间软骨形态的影响。
