Conventional osteosynthesis of proximal femur fractures is still affected by serious complication rates between 4–18%, even though advanced implant modifications and surgical techniques are common practice. In terms of increasing age and co-morbidity

There is a wide range of mechanical properties of spinal ligaments documented in literature. Due to the fact that ligaments contribute in stabilizing the spine by limiting excessive intersegmental motion, those properties are of particular interest for the implementation in musculoskeletal models. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of varying ligament stiffness on the kinematic behaviour of the lumbar spine. A musculoskeletal model with a detailed lumbar spine was modified according to fluoroscopic recordings and corresponding data files of three different subjects. For flexion, inverse dynamics analysis with a variation of the ligament stiffness matrix were conducted. The influence of several degrees of ligament stiffness on the lumbar spine model were investigated by tracking ligament forces, disc forces and resulting moments generated by the ligaments. Additionally, the kinematics of the motion segments were evaluated. An increase of ligament stiffness resulted in an increase of ligament and disc forces, whereas the relative change of disc force increased at a higher rate at the L4/L5 level (19 %) than at the L3/L4 (10 %) level in a fully flexed posture. The same behaviour applied to measured moments with 67 % and 45 %. As a consequence, the motion deflected to the lower levels of the lumbar spine and the lower discs had to resist an increase in loading. Higher values of ligament stiffness over all lumbar levels could lead to a shift of the loading and the motion between segments to the lower lumbar levels. This could lead to an increased risk for the lower lumbar parts.

Iliac crest bone harvesting is a frequently performed surgical procedure widely used to treat bone defects. The objective of this study is to assess the biomechanical quantities related to risk for pelvic fracture after harvesting an autologous bone graft at the anterior iliac crest. Finite element models with a simulated harvest site (sized 15 × 20 mm, 15 × 35 mm, 30 × 20 mm and 30 × 35 mm) in the iliac wing are created. The relevant loading case is when the ipsilateral leg is lifted off the ground. Musculoskeletal analysis is utilized to compute the muscle and joint forces involved in this motion. These forces are used as boundary conditions for the finite element analyses. Bone tissue stress is analyzed. Critical stress peaks are located between the anterior superior iliac spine (ASIS) and the anterior edge of the harvest site. Irrespective of the graft size, the iliac wing does not show any significant stress peaks with the harvest site being 20 to 25 mm posterior to the ASIS. The harvest area itself inhibits the distribution of the forces applied on the ASIS to extend to the posterior iliac wing. This leads to a lack of stress posterior to the harvest site. A balanced stress distribution with no stress peaks appears when the bone graft is taken below the iliac crest. A harvest site located at least 20 to 25 mm posterior to the ASIS should be preferred to minimize the risk of iliac fatigue fracture.