The effect of femoral muscle activation on the measurement of tibiofemoral alignment in asymptomatic knees

Knee alignment (i.e. bow legged or knock kneed) is a fundamental measurement in the assessment, monitoring and surgical management of patients with knee osteoarthritis. Measuring knee alignment before during and after a knee replacement surgery can answer the important question what is the best target angle that surgeons should aim for during the operation, leading to increased implant survival and knee function. However, measures made before and after surgery differ from those measured during the operation, with muscle activation potentially having an effect on the measures. This project will determine whether tensing the thigh muscle affects our measure knee alignment.