WCSE

An Automatic Method to Measure the TT-TG Distance Using 3D Slicer Software

Abstract— The tibial tubercle-trochlear groove distance (TT-TG) is an essential indicator of the lateral forces on the patellofemoral joint, which is valuable for evaluating tibial tuberosity lateralization and diagnosing patellar instability. The orthopaedic surgeons mainly used the image overlay technique to measure the TTTG distance manually, but this method was prone to inaccuracy due to the nonstandard position and subjectivity of surgeons. In this study, we proposed an automated method for measuring TT-TG on 3D models of the femur and tibia. Firstly, the average model is automatically calculated from a set of the femur and tibial models to be measured, And the orthopaedic surgeon labels the markers on the average model. Next, the Bayesian coherent point drift (BCPD) algorithm is used to register the average model with the model to be measured and calculate the corresponding makers on the model to be measured and make some optimization of the markers. Specifically, we used the markers on the undertested femur to calculate the lowest point of the trochlear groove. We used the lowest point of the trochlear groove and the mark point on the tibia to be measured to calculate TT-TG. We have measured TT-TG distance for a total 56 subjects and compared them with the values measured manually by the physician; the mean error is 0.645 mm for 33 male subjects and 0.690mm for 23 female subjects. This method can aid physicians in measuring TT-TG.

Index Terms— TT-TG, BCPD algorithm, average model, automated method for measuring.

Kaixuan Wang
Xi'an University of Posts and TelecommunicationsSchool of Computing
Yagang Wang
Xi'an University of Posts and TelecommunicationsSchool of Computing
Zhe Li
The Second Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Xi'an Jiaotong University
Pei Yang
The Second Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Xi'an Jiaotong University
Miao Yang
Xi'an University of Posts and TelecommunicationsSchool of Computing

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Cite: Kaixuan Wang, Yagang Wang, Zhe Li, Pei Yang, Miao Yang, " An Automatic Method to Measure the TT-TG Distance Using 3D Slicer Software, " WCSE 2022 Spring Event: 2022 9th International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Applications, pp. 437-445, Sanya, China, April 15-18, 2022.