Citation

Yammine K. Clin. Anat. 2019; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Affiliation

Center for Evidence-Based Anatomy, Sport & Orthopedics Research.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/ca.23509

PMID

31637769

Abstract

Understanding of anatomy is based on the study of anatomical variations. Morphometric variations can have important implications for surgical practice. The sizes of some anatomical structures are affected by age; however, cadavers used in anatomical research are usually of advanced age. The main aim of this study is to quantify the mean age of samples in cadaveric studies reporting morphometric values. PubMed was searched for the last three years to locate cadaveric studies reporting size values, excluding histological, forensic and osteological collections. Out of the 390 potentially relevant papers, 109 (28%) studies did not report the ages of their samples. In total, 177 studies were included for analysis comprising 4807 subjects. The most studied structures were those of the musculoskeletal system. The mean age of the pooled sample was 71.1 ±11.0 years. The lowest reported age was 16 while the highest was 104 years. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed no correlation with any of the following variables: country of study, anatomical region, anatomical structure or journal type. The mean age of cadavers used to measure the sizes of human anatomical structures falls largely within the senior age category. The reported values in an aging population will not necessarily mirror other populations such as the pediatric. The outcomes of surgeries that depend to some extent on tight morphometric values such as flap surgeries, microsurgery, tendon transfer or mini-invasive procedures could differ when they are performed on other age categories. More anatomical research is needed for better reporting of age-related morphometric changes. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

aging; anatomical variation; cadaver; human anatomy; morphometric