A regression orthogonal biomechanical analysis of internal fixation for femoral shaft fracture

To find the relationships between internal fixation parameters and biomechanical indexes with least number of runs, a regression orthogonal approach is proposed to establish surrogate models of different biomechanical indexes. Firstly, a simplified model of transverse femoral shaft fracture is built, and varieties of geometric sizes for plates and screws configurations are combined based on orthogonal array. Next, the biomechanical indexes of different combinations are calculated through finite element analysis (FEA). Furthermore, surrogate models are developed with the aid of regression orthogonal analysis. Finally, with comparison of biomechanical indexes obtained from the surrogate models and FEA results, highly coincident results validate the surrogate models. The number of combinations is greatly reduced compared with that arranged by comprehensive regression analysis. The surrogate models show acceptable results for predicating biomechanical indexes, whose relative deviation is less than 9%. Moreover, the results obtained by the surrogate models suggest that working length and thickness of the plate are the significant parameters on the maximum plate stress and maximum intra-fragmentary movement respectively, which complies with previous studies. The regression orthogonal method presented in this study can greatly reduce the number of experimental runs for investigating the biomechanics of internal fixation for femoral shaft fracture. The method can also be applied to other scenarios of fractures or even the other biomedical fields to provide a comprehensive insight into biomedical relationships with least number of trials.

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Opracowanie rekordu ze środków MNiSW, umowa Nr 461252 w ramach programu "Społeczna odpowiedzialność nauki" - moduł: Popularyzacja nauki i promocja sportu (2020).