Home Department: Management Science & Engineering
Mentor: Kevin Shea (Orthopaedic Surgery)

“Modeling the Patellofemoral Joint and the Relation of the Trochlea to the Growth Plate”

In this project, the Shea lab will study a database of 86 pediatric computerized tomography (CT) and high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans to create a statistical shape model (SSM) for the pediatric/skeletally immature patellofemoral joint. Bryan’s focus in the creation of this SSM is to define the relationship between the growth plate to the developing trochlear anatomy. Through understanding this relationship, surgeons can use guided growth suppression/stimulation to alter a dysplastic trochlea to match the ideal concavity depicted by the SSM. This can minimize patellar dislocation rates in young athletes, reduce frequencies of surgery, and ultimately allow for a future free of chronic patellofemoral osteoarthritis.