Calibration of Holzapfel-Gasser-Ogden collateral ligament properties in a hybrid post-arthroplasty knee joint model for laxity testing

Abstract

Knee collateral ligaments play a vital role in providing frontal-plane stability in post-total knee arthroplasty (TKA) knees. Finite element models can utilize computationally efficient one-dimensional springs or more physiologically accurate three-dimensional continuum elements like the Holzapfel-Gasser-Ogden (HGO) formulation. However, there is limited literature defining subject-specific mechanical properties, particularly for the HGO model. In this study, we propose a co-simulation framework to obtain subject-specific material parameters for an HGO-based finite element ligament model integrated into a rigid-body model of the post-TKA knee. Our approach achieves comparable accuracy to spring formulations while significantly reducing coefficient calibration time and demonstrating improved correlation with reference knee kinematics and ligament strains throughout the tested loading range.