Morphometry of the proximal femoral canal analyzed by a new mathematical model.

Many studies have analyzed the morphometry of the proximal medullary canal of the femur. The knowledge of the shape and size of the femoral canal, in fact, is necessary to obtain , in the implantation of a custom made prosthesis, the maximum fitting of the stem with the internal geometry of the femur. We studied the morphometry of the proximal medullary canal in 70 femurs obtained from cadevers, using mathematical models applied to the data obtained by measurements performed on axial CT scans and coronal scans of tridimensional reconstructions. The results were compared with those obtained by measurements on standard radiographs. We found that the median portion of the proximal extremity of the femur shows the highest degree of procurvation. On the frontal plane, the uppermost portion of the medullary canal make an inward curve cranially, and an outward curve caudally. The results of our studies indicate that no definite information on the morphometry of the proximal femoral medullary canal can be obtained from radiographs.