An Evaluation of Carrying Angle of the Elbow Joint and Its Relation with Hip Circumferences: A Comparative Cross-Sectional Institutional Study

Background: The elbow joint is a uniaxial joint, where elbow allows flexion and extension, the ulna moving on the trochlea and the radial head on the capitulum. The term "carrying angle" is named for the way of the forearm angles away from the body when something is carried, such as a pail of water. This angle is made by the axes of the arm and forearm when the elbow is fully extended. The forearm diverges laterally forming an angle that is greater in the women. This allows clearance of the wider female pelvis as the limbs swing during walking; however, no significant difference exists regarding the function of the elbow. The study was conducted to study the anthropometric data of the carrying angle and it's relation with hip-circumferences among the subjects. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out among 300 MBBS students for duration of 2 years. Measurement of Carrying Angle were taken by using a Manual Goniometer after taking proper consent and in presence of female attendant for female students. Hip circumference was measured using simple measuring tape and correlations between two variables were determined with Pearson's correlation coefficient study. Results: A total of 300 under graduate students were included in the study, age ranging from 18 to 25 years. The findings indicated that, among the male participants 62.5? had a normal Carrying Angle, 37.5? had an abnormal Carrying Angle and among the female participant 52? had a normal carrying angle and 48.4? had an abnormal Carrying Angle. The hip circumference among the study participants reveals, among the male subjects mean SD was 89.05?9.87 (63-108) and among the female subject the mean SD was 93.27?7.78 (73-115). The mean differences of SD between the two sexes were 4.22 cm. After comparing the carrying angle and hip circumferences both sexes. Pearson's correlation coefficients value between the two variables were 0.873, 0.833, 0.797 and 0.673; which reveals a positive correlation and the p value of the study was 0.004 (p <0.05) which indicates statistically significant study. Conclusion: This study describes the brief anatomy of elbow, elbow joint and its surrounding structures and hip circumference of the study subjects. The study reveals a correlation between carrying angles and hip circumferences.