Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital Orthopedic Knee Team Wins Excellent Paper Award in Science and Technology

(From left) Seon Jonggeun and Yang Hongyeol, Professors of Orthopedics at Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital.

The knee joint team in the Department of Orthopedics at Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital has attracted attention from the scientific and technological community with research results that reflect the unique structural characteristics of Korean knees.

On July 11, Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital announced that Professors Seon Jonggeun and Yang Hongyeol of the Department of Orthopedics received the 35th Excellent Paper Award in Science and Technology for their paper titled "Radiologic Assessment of Knee Phenotypes Based on the Coronal Plane Alignment of the Knee Classification in a Korean Population."

This award is a prestigious academic honor presented by the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies, which carefully selects outstanding papers from the previous year's SCI-listed publications by domestic researchers. The paper was recognized as an excellent work in the field of orthopedics within the health sciences category.

This study is notable for its detailed analysis of coronal plane alignment types of the knee joint in Koreans and for reinterpreting the existing Western-centric classification system, CPAK (Coronal Plane Alignment of the Knee), to fit the Korean population.

The researchers compared and analyzed the alignment characteristics between healthy knees and those with degenerative arthritis, revealing that Type I phenotype is the most common among arthritis patients.

Professor Yang Hongyeol stated, "This award highlights the significance of surgical alignment strategies that reflect the anatomical and biomechanical characteristics of Korean individuals," and added, "We will continue to focus on developing customized artificial joint surgery strategies based on the anatomical features of each patient."

Meanwhile, Professor Yang Hongyeol will begin a long-term research fellowship at the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Stanford University in the United States starting in August, where he plans to continue AI-based research related to knee osteoarthritis.