Torsion Tool: An automated tool for personalising femoral and tibial geometries in OpenSim musculoskeletal models

Kirsten Veerkamp (Corresponding author), Hans Kainz, Bryce A Killen, Hulda Jónasdóttir, Marjolein M van der Krogt

Publications: Contribution to journalArticlePeer Reviewed

Abstract

Common practice in musculoskeletal modelling is to use scaled musculoskeletal models based on a healthy adult, but this does not consider subject-specific geometry, such as tibial torsion and femoral neck-shaft and anteversion angles (NSA and AVA). The aims of this study were to (1) develop an automated tool for creating OpenSim models with subject-specific tibial torsion and femoral NSA and AVA, (2) evaluate the femoral component, and (3) release the tool open-source. The Torsion Tool (https://simtk.org/projects/torsiontool) is a MATLAB-based tool that requires an individual's tibial torsion, NSA and AVA estimates as input and rotates corresponding bones and associated muscle points of a generic musculoskeletal model. Performance of the Torsion Tool was evaluated comparing femur bones as personalised with the Torsion Tool and scaled generic femurs with manually segmented bones as golden standard for six typically developing children and thirteen children with cerebral palsy. The tool generated femur geometries closer to the segmentations, with lower maximum (-19%) and root mean square (-18%) errors and higher Jaccard indices (+9%) compared to generic femurs. Furthermore, the tool resulted in larger improvements for participants with higher NSA and AVA deviations. The Torsion Tool allows an automatic, fast, and user-friendly way of personalising femoral and tibial geometry in an OpenSim musculoskeletal model. Personalisation is expected to be particularly relevant in pathological populations, as will be further investigated by evaluating the effects on simulation outcomes.
Original languageEnglish
Article number110589
Number of pages6
JournalJournal of Biomechanics
Volume125
Early online date26 Jun 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 26 Aug 2021

Austrian Fields of Science 2012

  • 211904 Biomechanics

Keywords

  • ANTEVERSION
  • CEREBRAL-PALSY
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Femoral anteversion
  • GAIT
  • HIP
  • LIMB
  • MUSCLES
  • Musculoskeletal modeling
  • SYSTEM
  • Subject-specific
  • Tibial torsion

Cite this