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Design and Biomechanical Comparison of a Patient-Specific Anatomical Plate Versus Conventional Plate for Distal Humerus Fractures: A Finite Element Analysis

Authors :

Fahime Rezazade¹ Azadeh Ghouchani² Maryam Amoochi³

1- گروه مهندسی پزشکی، دانشکده مهندسی، دانشگاه اصفهان 2- گروه مهندسی پزشکی، دانشکده مهندسی، دانشگاه اصفهان 3- دانشکده مهندسی پزشکی، دانشگاه صنعتی امیرکبیر (پلی‌تکنیک تهران)، تهران، ایران

Keywords :

Biomechanical characteristics،conventional plate،Fracture stability،Finite element method (FEM)،Distal humerus fracture،Patient-specific anatomic plate

Abstract :

Distal humerus fractures are clinically challenging due to anatomical complexity and complications. In this study, a new anatomic plate was designed and compared with a conventional plate for B1-type distal humerus fractures using finite element analysis. A CT-derived 3D humerus model of a 37-year-old female was developed with heterogeneous bone material properties. An anatomically contoured plate was digitally designed to match bone contours and compared with a conventional locking plate under tensile and compressive loadings (100 N). Stress, strain, and displacement analyses revealed similar peak stresses in both designs, though the conventional plate had higher stress near the fracture site. In cancellous bone, the anatomical plate model demonstrated double the stress magnitude compared to the conventional plate, suggesting more effective load transfer. The anatomical plate exhibited reduced strain, whereas cancellous bone showed higher strain within the 100–2000 microstrain range optimal for secondary bone healing. Significantly, despite higher overall hardware displacement, the anatomical plate caused less fracture interface displacement than the conventional plate. This counterintuitive result supports new fracture biomechanics concepts, showing semi-rigid fixation promotes better healing conditions. The anatomical plate’s ability to maintain fracture reduction with controlled micromotion may improve outcomes, supporting anatomically contoured designs for complex periarticular fractures.