The patella is the largest sesamoid bone in the body. It is also the attachment and insertion for the extensor tendons of the knee and therefore provides an important functional role. In children, the age of ossification of many of the bones throughout the skeletal system has been well defined. The patella ossification age iscurrently believed to be between 3-6 years (1,2) however, to the authors' knowledge, there are norobuststudiesin the literature to support this assertion. A number of disorders are characterised by absent or...

331 (M=199, F=132) sequential knee radiographs of patients between the ages of 2-8 were reviewed. This involved a time period from Jan 2014-April 2016. Cases were obtained through a search on the integrated picture archiving and communication system encompassing the three different emergency departments within Barts Health NHS trust. Patients with features of skeletal dysplasia, developmental disorder and metabolic bone disease were not included in the study. Outpatient and GP requests were also not included to reduce the chance of occult chronic disease influencing the...

Ranges for patella ossification: Male: 2-6 years Female: 2-4 years 96% of female patellas are ossified before their 4th birthday cf. 34% of male patellas. 100% of female patellas are ossified before their 5th birthday. 97% of male patellas are ossified before their 6th birthday, 100% by the 7th birthday. At all ages between 2 and 8, females have a larger ossified patella than males, greatest difference between ages 2-4 years.

The overall range of patella ossification age is 2-6 years however, there is a clear gender difference with all girls having ossified patellae before their 5th birthday. Moreover, girls have larger patella ossification centres compared to boys of the same age.

Platzer, Werner (2004). Color Atlas of Human Anatomy, Vol. 1: Locomotor System (5th ed.). Thieme. p.194. ISBN3-13-533305-1. Knipe H et al. Radiopaedia [online]. Available URL: http://radiopaedia.org/articles/patella Accessed 1st May 2016