The knee is the most complicated joint in the body. The ligaments of the knee keep the joint stable. The Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) is the most commonly injured ligament of the knee. ACL rupture is a traumatic and debilitating injury, commonly occurring in young healthy active individuals. ACL rupture is associated with early development of knee arthritis and knee instability. Thus it can be a very devastating injury.
The mainstay for treatment of an ACL rupture is surgery to reconstruction of the ligament. Although knee function returns to normal in many cases, there is a large proportion of people who experience ACL re-rupture after surgical repair. Additionally, many people are unknowingly at high risk of ACL rupture and re-rupture.
This creates the need to quickly and effectively assess a patient knee function in clinic. Current techniques to assess knee function are arduous and very technical. Thus, we are undertaking the standardization of a wearable device which can assess knee function in clinic. We have termed this device the Wireless Inertial Measurement Unit (WIMU). WIMU measures various aspects of knee function which are associated with high risk of ACL function. We aim to establish measurement of knee function in healthy individuals, and then compare people who are known to be at high risk, in order to ensure that this device can detect those individuals who are at high risk for ACL rupture. In this fashion we can create a new standard to assessing knee function which is effective and efficient.
