The morphometric analysis of the patella from the male cadaveric native knees of the ethnic Igbos of Southeast Nigeria and its implications in total knee replacement

Background: In forensic study, the importance of the patellar morphometry for human identification has been widely accepted, and it also plays a role in the biomechanics of the knee. Aim: The aim of this study is to analyse the morphometric parameters of patella from the cadaver of the Igbo population of South-east Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Parameters from 60 patellae from 30 male cadavers at the museum of the Department of Anatomy University of Nigeria were measured using the Vernier calipers. Results: The determined values of the parameters of the cadaveric knees in centimetres are as follows: PH: M =4.6, SD = 0. 47, PW: M =4.69, SD = 0.29, PT: M =2.66, SD = 0.15, PLH: M = 6.67, SD = 0.67, PLW: M = 2.86, SD = 0.27, WMAF: M = 2.55, SD = 0.18, WLAF: M =2.77, SD = 0.18. The results of the independent sample t-tests indicated that there were no statistically significant differences in the mean values of the parameters of interest between the left and right patella. The result of the Pearson correlations between PH and other parameters indicated there was a very strong positive significant correlation with PW: (r[60] =0.924, P