The development of extra-articular ligaments of the hip joint determine angular values of the proximal femur

There are practically no data on the quantitative aspects of prenatal morphogenesis and the growth rates of the ligaments of the hip joint in humans, as well as information on the correspondence of the shape and structure of the ligaments to the bones forming the joint. The aim of the study was to reveal the features of the growth of the extra-articular ligaments of the hip joint in the prenatal period and to establish correlations between the structure of the ligaments and the structures of the proximal end of the femur. The material of the study is based on the analysis of 175 cases without pathology of the musculoskeletal system. The dimensions of the ilio-femoral, pubic-femoral, ischio-femoral ligaments and the cervico-diaphyseal angle and angle of rotation of the femoral neck in relation to the distal epiphysis of the bone were studied. As a result of the study, it was found that in the process of prenatal development with increasing age, the distance between the distal fixation points and the angle between the parts of the ilio-femoral ligament increases. Both legs have fibers that are woven into the fibrous membrane of the joint capsule. A correlation was found between the growth of morphometric parameters of the ilio-femoral ligament and the angular values of the proximal femur. In contrast to the iliofemoral ligament, the pubo-femoral and ischio-femoral ligaments show low signs of differentiation at different stages of prenatal ontogenesis. The pubo-femoral ligament becomes available for macroscopic examination from the beginning of the second half of the prenatal period. It is defined as a thickening of the medial fibrous membrane of the joint capsule, has its origin on the superior branch of the pubic bone and the iliac part of the acetabulum and is attached to the intertrochanteric line in the medial segment. The sciatic-femoral ligament is macroscopically defined as a thickening of the posterior part of the joint capsule. The ligament has a triangular shape, with a base in the region of the ischial part of the acetabulum and the ischial tubercle, its apex facing the trochanteric fossa at the antero-inner edge of the greater trochanter. It was found that the growth rate of morphometric parameters of different parts of the hip joint ligaments at different stages is not the same, which determines the change in the shape of the ligaments. The greatest transformations occur in the ilio-femoral ligament, the smallest in the pubic-femoral and sciatic-femoral ligaments. There is a correlation between the anatomical structure of the extra-articular ligaments of the hip joint and the corresponding angular values of the proximal femur.