Robotic Simulation: Tissue Function with In Vivo Motions

描述（由申请人提供）：前交叉韧带（ACL）和内侧半月板（MM）是常见的膝关节损伤结构。 失去这些结构中的一个或两个的功能可以显著改变关节运动学，导致软骨损伤和长期退行性关节疾病和骨关节炎的发作。虽然研究人员开始准确地描述人类受试者的正常膝关节运动学和韧带表面应变，但在没有直接校准的情况下，无法测量人体中至关重要的组织力和接触应力。为了解决这个问题，研究人员建议确定ACL的力量和半月板接触应力在山羊膝关节的选择在体内活动的机器人。我们寻求 检验体内组织力和变形以及组织-组织相互作用的总体假设 可以通过在体外环境中准确再现体内膝关节运动学来预测。为了检验这一整体假设，我们将研究5个具体目标： 目标1：在手术中使用超声晶体和组织力传感器对山羊膝关节进行器械化，以在手术后受控的体内活动期间精确监测相对骨位置和传感器电压。 目标二：在实验室中，将相对骨骼位置转换为关节运动学，以驱动机器人再现这些体内活动期间的膝关节状态。比较实际和模拟的关节旋转和平移，以确定在步态站立阶段每项活动的体内运动学是否在可接受的公差范围内重建。 目标3：比较体内和体外组织力传感器电压，以确定在每种活动的步态站立阶段，体内电压是否在可接受的公差范围内重新创建。 目标4：进行选择性切割实验，以研究关节囊、韧带和半月板结构如何影响ACL和ACL的功能，以模拟体内活动。 目标5：校准力传感器，以确定每个活动的ACL力和半月板接触应力。测量每个体内活动的相关组织变形。 这项研究计划将大大提高我们对正常膝关节运动和力量的理解。这些技术将作为研究膝关节和其他关节损伤、修复和重建的平台，并开发功能性组织工程参数。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and medial meniscus (MM) are frequently injured knee structures. Losing the functions of either or both of these structures can dramatically alter joint kinematics, causing cartilage damage and the onset of degenerative joint disease and osteoarthritis in the longer term. While investigators are beginning to accurately characterize normal knee kinematics and ligament surface strains in human subjects, critically important tissue forces and contact stresses are impossible to measure in humans without direct calibration. To address this concern, the investigators propose to determine ACL forces and meniscus contact stresses in the goat knee for selected in vivo activities in a robot. We seek to test the global hypothesis that in vivo tissue forces and deformations and tissue-tissue interactions can be predicted by accurately reproducing in vivo knee kinematics in an in vitro setting. To test this global hypothesis, we will examine 5 specific aims: Aim 1: Instrument the goat knee at surgery with ultrasonic crystals and tissue force transducers to precisely monitor relative bone positions and transducer voltages during controlled in vivo activities after surgery. Aim 2: In the laboratory, transform the relative bone positions into joint kinematics to drive a robot to reproduce the knee state during these in vivo activities. Compare actual and simulated joint rotations and translations to determine if in vivo kinematics have been recreated within an acceptable tolerance during the stance phase of gait for each activity. Aim 3: Compare in vivo and in vitro tissue force transducer voltages to determine if in vivo voltages have been recreated within an acceptable tolerance during the stance phase of gait for each activity. Aim 4: Perform selective cutting experiments to study how capsular, ligamentous, and meniscus structures influence the functions of the ACL and menisci for simulated in vivo activities. Aim 5: Calibrate the force transducers to determine ACL forces and meniscus contact stresses for each in activity. Measure the associated tissue deformations for each in vivo activity. This research program will dramatically improve our understanding of normal knee motion and forces. These technologies will serve as a platform for studying injury, repair and reconstruction in the knee and other joints and to develop functional tissue engineering parameters.