Wols law

Renement of Wols Law: Utah-Paradigm of

Bone physiology (Mechanostat Theorem) by Harold
Frost.[9]

This article is about the medical theory. For the album

by The Joy Formidable, see Wolfs Law.
Wols law is a theory developed by the German
anatomist and surgeon Julius Wol (18361902) in the
19th century that states that bone in a healthy person or
animal will adapt to the loads under which it is placed.[1]
If loading on a particular bone increases, the bone will
remodel itself over time to become stronger to resist
that sort of loading.[2] The internal architecture of the
trabeculae undergoes adaptive changes, followed by secondary changes to the external cortical portion of the
bone,[3] perhaps becoming thicker as a result. The inverse is true as well: if the loading on a bone decreases,
the bone will become weaker due to turnover, it is less
metabolically costly to maintain and there is no stimulus for continued remodeling that is required to maintain
bone mass.[4]

3 Examples

Mechanotransduction
Tennis players often use one arm more than the other

The remodeling of bone in response to loading is achieved

via mechanotransduction, a process through which forces
or other mechanical signals are converted to biochemical
signals in cellular signaling.[5] Mechanotransduction leading to bone remodeling involve the steps of mechanocoupling, biochemical coupling, signal transmission, and cell
response.[6] The specic eects on bone structure depends on the duration, magnitude and rate of loading, and
it has been found that only cyclic loading can induce bone
formation.[6] When loaded, uid ows away from areas
of high compressive loading in the bone matrix.[7] Osteocytes are the most abundant cells in bone and are also
the most sensitive to such uid ow caused by mechanical loading.[5] Upon sensing a load, osteocytes regulate
bone remodeling by signaling to other cells with signaling
molecules or direct contact.[8] Additionally, osteoprogenitor cells, which may dierentiate into osteoblasts or osteoclasts, are also mechanosensors and may dierentiate
one way or another depending on the loading condition.[8]

The racquet-holding arm bones of tennis players become much stronger than those of the other arm.
Their bodies have strengthened the bones in their
racquet-holding arm since it is routinely placed under higher than normal stresses. The most critical loads on a tennis players arms occur during the
serve. There are four main phases of a tennis serve
and the highest loads occur during external shoulder
rotation and ball impact. The combination of high
load and arm rotation result in a twisted bone density
prole.[10]
Weightlifters often display increases in bone density
in response to their training.[11]
The deforming eects of torticollis on craniofacial
development in children.[12]

4 See also
2

Associated laws

Julius Wol

In relation to soft tissue, Davis Law explains how

soft tissue remolds itself according to imposed demands.

Functional matrix hypothesis

Osteogenic Loading
1

References

[1] Anahad O'Connor (October 18, 2010). The Claim: After Being Broken, Bones Can Become Even Stronger.
New York Times. Retrieved 2010-10-19. This concept
that bone adapts to pressure, or a lack of it is known
as Wols law. ... there is no evidence that a bone that
breaks will heal to be stronger than it was before.
[2] Frost, HM (1994).
Wols Law and bones
structural
adaptations
to
mechanical
usage:
an overview for clinicians.
The Angle Orthodontist 64 (3): 175188.
doi:10.1043/00033219(1994)064<0175:WLABSA>2.0.CO;2.
PMID 8060014.
[3] Stedmans Medical Dictionary
[4] Wol J. The Law of Bone Remodeling. Berlin Heidelberg New York: Springer, 1986 (translation of the German 1892 edition)
[5] Huang, Chenyu; Rei Ogawa (October 2010). Mechanotransduction in bone repair and regeneration. FASEB J.
24.
[6] Duncan, RL; CH Turner (November 1995). Mechanotransduction and the functional response of bone to mechanical strain. Calcied Tissue International 57 (5):
344358. doi:10.1007/bf00302070.
[7] Turner, CH; MR Forwood; MW Otter (1994). Mechanotransduction in bone: do bone cells act as sensors of uid
ow?". FASEB J. 8 (11).
[8] Chen, Jan-Hung; Chao Liu; Lidan You; Craig A Simmons
(2010). Boning up on Wols Law: Mechanical regulation of the cells that make and maintain bone. Journal of
Biomechanics 43. doi:10.1016/j.jbiomech.2009.09.016.
[9] Frost, HM (2003). Bones mechanostat: a 2003 update.
The anatomical record. Part A, Discoveries in molecular,
cellular, and evolutionary biology 275 (2): 10811101.
doi:10.1002/ar.a.10119. PMID 14613308.
[10] Taylor RE; Zheng c; Jackson RP; Doll JC; Chen JC;
Holzbar KR; Besier T; Kuhl E. The phenomenon of
twisted growth: humeral torsion in dominant arms of high
performance tennis players.. Comput Methods Biomech
Biomed Engin. Retrieved 27 Feb 2013.
[11] Mayo Clinic Sta (2010). Strength training: Get
stronger, leaner, healthier. Mayo Foundation for Education and Medical Research. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
[12] Oppenheimer, AJ; Tong, L; Buchman, SR (Nov 2008).
Craniofacial Bone Grafting: Wols Law Revisited..
Craniomaxillofacial trauma & reconstruction 1 (1): 49
61. doi:10.1055/s-0028-1098963. PMC 3052728.
PMID 22110789.

Das Gesetz der Transformation der Knochen - 1892.

Reprint: Pro Business, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-386805-648-8.
The Classic: On the Inner Architecture of Bones and
its Importance for Bone Growth, Clin Orthop Rel
Res. 2010 Apr;468(4):1056-1065

EXTERNAL LINKS

6 External links
Julius Wol Institut, Charit - Universittsmedizin
Berlin, main research areas are the regeneration and
biomechanics of the musculoskeletal system and the
improvement of joint replacement.

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