Morphometry and Morphology of the Acetabulum Within the Black African Population of South Africa

The acetabulum is the large cup-shaped cavity on the lateral surface of the hip bone, which articulates with the head of the femur to form the hip joint. The morphometry and morphology of the acetabulum is important in the diagnosis and treatment of hip joint injuries and disease. Population specific differences exist regarding the acetabulum, therefore, this study aimed to document the morphometry and morphology of the acetabulum within a Black African population in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. A total of 100 dry hip bones (R=44; L=56) from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (Westville and NRMSOM campuses) were examined for this study. The hip bones, with documented sex, were all from the Black African population. A sliding digital caliper was used to measure the acetabular diameter, depth and acetabular notch width. The morphology of the acetabular margin was document in accordance with Govsa et al. (2005). Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS version 24 software. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The means and standard deviations of the morphometric measurements for the entire population were as follows: (a) acetabular diameter of 54.84 +/- 4.18 mm, (b) acetabular depth of 31.30 +/- 3.18 mm and (c) acetabular notch width of 21.72 +/- 2.98 mm. The observed shapes of the acetabular margin that were angular (41 %), curved (22 %), irregular (23 %) and straight (14 %). Knowledge of the anatomy of the acetabulum is useful to surgeons, prosthetists, anthropologists and forensic anthropology experts. The morphometry and morphology of the Black African population group of KwaZulu-Natal presented with differences when compared to other population groups studied in literature.