STRESS ANALYSIS OF FEMUR

An analytical model is developed for the determination of the mechanical stresses in a femur under various loading conditions. The effects of both the body weight transmitted through the femur and the muscle forces acting on it are considered in the analysis. The femur is treated as a three-dimensional elastic member subjected to axial and shearing forces, bending and twisting moments. Using the laws of mechanics the stresses are computed at discrete points in the bone and the stress tensor is formed. Computation of the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the stress tensor associated with each point yields the magnitude and direction of the principal stresses. The stress trajectories are then constructed indicating the lines of maximum internal stresses in the femur. The general pattern of the stress trajectories verify the fact that the internal architecture of a typical bone results from an adaptation of form to the normal static demands. © 1969.