A cadaver knee simulator to evaluate the biomechanics of rectus femoris transfer

A cadaver knee simulator has been developed to model surgical transfer of the rectus femoris. The simulator allows knee specimens six degrees of freedom and is capable of modeling both the swing and stance phases of human gait. Experiments were conducted using a mechanical hinge analog of the knee to verify that time, flexion angle, and knee extension force measurements recorded when using the simulator were not influenced by its design or operation. A ballistic double pendulum model was used to model the swing phase of gait, and the contributions of hip and ankle torques and hamstrings cocontraction were included when modeling the stance phase of gait. When modeling swing, range of motion and time to peak knee flexion in swing for the hinge knee were similar to those of in vivo test subjects. Measurements of hinge knee extension force when modeling stance under various biomechanical conditions matched those predicted using an analytical model. Future studies using cadaver knee specimens will apply techniques described in this paper to further our understanding of changes in knee biomechanics caused by rectus femoris transfer surgery.