“Morphometric Study of Nutrient Foramen of Femur in Nepalese Population”

Introduction: The femur is the strongest and longest bone that forms the skeleton of the thigh, bears body weight, supports movement of legs and provides attachment to muscles. Nutrient foramen is an opening in the shaft of femur. The nutrient artery enters through nutrient foramen through cortex into the medullary cavity of the femur. The morphometry of nutrient foramina are variable between different individuals with different Nationality. Aims: To study the morphometry of nutrient foramen in femurs of Nepalese subjects. Materials and Methods: The present study was carried out on 80 adult femur bones of both sides. Maximum length of femur, circumference at the level of nutrient foramen, location and position of nutrient foramen was measured and recorded separately for both femur with the help of measuring scale, thread and vernier calliper. All the collected data were represented as mean then analyzed with MS Excel 2007 software and represented graphically. Results: The mean length of femur obtained in the study was 42 cms. The nutrient foramina were found to be present in all femurs and were directed towards the upper end of femur. It has been observed that a total of 47 nutrient foramina were found to be present in 40 right femur and 61 nutrient foramina in 40 left femurs. Conclusion: The parameters measured in the present study are of clinical importance because it will be helpful to orthopaedic surgeons during any surgical procedures such as bone repair, bone grafting and microvascular bone surgery.