What Is the Relationship Between the Breech Presentation and Femoral Trochlear Dysplasia? An Experimental Study of the Breech Presentation Model in Neonatal Rats

Background: The relationship between breech presentation and trochlear dysplasia had been confirmed. However, the pathological process of breech-related trochlear dysplasia remain unclear. This study aimed to establish an animal model to simulate breech presentation and to analyze the pathological process of the femoral trochlea. Materials: and Methods: One hundred and twenty neonatal rats were randomly assigned into a control group and two experimental groups that were swaddled (using surgical tape) to keep the hip flexed and knees extended to simulate human breech presentation for the 5 days (short Swaddling) and the 10 days (prolonged Swaddling) of life. Gross and cross-sectional observation, histological staining measurement in two experimental time points (5, 10 days after birth) were conducted to evaluate the morphological changes of the femoral trochlea. Results: : The incidence of trochlear dysplasia increased with the Swaddling time. Rats in the prolonged Swaddling group had the high prevalence of trochlea dysplasia (52 of 60), followed by short Swaddling group (42 of 60). Gross and cross-sectional observation showed a shallower trochlea groove in two experimental groups. Histologicalstaining measurement indicated that the trochlear sulcus angle and trochlear sulcus depth were significantly different between the experimental group and the control group since day 5 and day 10. Conclusion: In this model, breech presentation had a adverse influence on neonatal knees and could induce trochlear dysplasia. What is more, this study also showed that the more time in breech presentation, the more incidence of trochlear dysplasia.