Journal of Clinical Medicine
Exploratory 3D-CT Morphometric Study of the Safe Bony Corridor for Percutaneous Navicular Fixation Across Neutral, Cavus, and Planus Foot Phenotypes
By Pablo Ruiz, Ricardo Vega, Daniel Poggio and 4 others.
Abstract
Background
The navicular bone is a complex structure with a three-dimensional morphology that varies according to foot phenotype, but has not been completely characterized for safe percutaneous fixation.
Objective
The objective of this study was to develop and apply a standardized 3D-CT protocol to identify the navicular safe bony corridor and quantify its dimensions according to foot phenotype and sex differences.
Methods
Using an exploratory cross-sectional observational study, we evaluated 63 navicular bones (21 per phenotype: neutral, cavus, planus), selected by stratified random sampling. A pilot phase was first conducted on nine feet (three per phenotype) to establish and refine the measurement protocol; in this phase, measurements were independently performed by two observers, yielding an excellent inter-observer reliability. The remaining 54 feet were then measured by the biomedical engineer. Comparisons between foot phenotypes and sex were performed using Kruskal–Wallis and Dunn’s post hoc tests with a Bonferroni correction (all two-tailed, α = 0.05).