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The Bone & Joint Journal
Vol. 105-B, Issue 12 | Pages 1239 - 1243
1 Dec 2023
Yoshitani J Sunil Kumar KH Ekhtiari S Khanduja V


The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery British Volume
Vol. 89-B, Issue 10 | Pages 1283 - 1288
1 Oct 2007
Tayton E

In an adult man the mean femoral anteversion angle measures approximately 15°, for which the reasons have never been fully elucidated.

An assortment of simian and quadruped mammalian femora was therefore examined and the anteversion angles measured. A simple static mathematical model was then produced to explain the forces acting on the neck of the femur in the quadruped and in man. Femoral anteversion was present in all the simian and quadruped femora and ranged between 4° and 41°. It thus appears that man has retained this feature despite evolving from quadrupedal locomotion.

Quadrupeds generally mobilise with their hips flexed forwards from the vertical; in this position, it is clear that anteversion gives biomechanical advantage against predominantly vertical forces. In man with mobilisation on vertical femora, the biomechanical advantage of anteversion is against forces acting mainly in the horizontal plane. This has implications in regard to the orientation of hip replacements.