The influence of knee varus deformity on the kinetic and kinematic characteristics of musculoskeletal models during gait

An inherent shortcoming of generic musculoskeletal models is their inability to accurately model deformed musculoskeletal system, while generating fully personalized models are time and money consuming. To address this, we created a MATLAB tool that modifies OpenSim generic models, producing semi-personalized models. A subject with varus deformity participated in our study and her associated semi-personalized model was created. The semi-personalized model significantly decreased marker error during Inverse Kinematics (p < 0.05). Notably, hip abduction/adduction ROM increased by 4.87 degrees on average, muscle activation in TFL rose by 53%, and Gracilis activation dropped by 4% in the semi-personalized model. Overall, semi-personalized models enhance accuracy for higher musculoskeletal analyses.