Kinematic biomechanical assessment of human articular cartilage transplants in the knee using 3-T MRI: an in vivo reproducibility study

Abstract

The aims of this study were to examine the clinical feasibility and reproducibility of kinematic MR imaging with respect to changes in T (2) in the femoral condyle articular cartilage. We used a flexible knee coil, which allows acquisition of data in different positions from 40 degrees flexion to full extension during MR examinations. The reproducibility of T (2) measurements was evaluated for inter-rater and inter-individual variability and determined as a coefficient of variation (CV) for each volunteer and rater. Three different volunteers were measured twice and regions of interest (ROIs) were selected by three raters at different time points. To prove the clinical feasibility of this method, 20 subjects (10 patients and 10 age- and sex-matched volunteers) were enrolled in the study. Inter-rater variability ranged from 2 to 9 and from 2 to 10% in the deep and superficial zones, respectively. Mean inter-individual variability was 7% for both zones. Different T (2) values were observed in the superficial cartilage zone of patients compared with volunteers. Since repair tissue showed a different behavior in the contact zone compared with healthy cartilage, a possible marker for improved evaluation of repair tissue quality after matrix-associated autologous chondrocyte transplantation (MACT) may be available and may allow biomechanical assessment of cartilage transplants.

A comparison of multi-echo spin-echo and triple-echo steady-state T2 mapping for in vivo evaluation of articular cartilage

“…In has been previously demonstrated that focal cartilage lesions, as well as the cartilage repair tissue, are characterized by T 2 elevation [ 14 , 33 – 35 ]. This focal T 2 increase was attributed either to collagen disorganization or to cartilage swelling, accompanied by water volume increase.…”

Articular Cartilage Tissue Engineering

“…For implanted constructs, non-invasive methods such as MRI [631][632][633][634] and ultrasound [635][636][637] can be applied. Stains such as alcian blue, safranin O (often used together with fast green), and sirius red are regularly employed, along with combinations such as Movat's pentachrome and hematoxylin/eosin to histologically demonstrate the location of glycosaminoglycan, collagen, and other ECM.…”

Cell Transplantation for Articular Cartilage Defects: Principles of Past, Present, and Future Practice

“…However, none of these studies had more than 2 years of follow-up, a relatively short time to detect degeneration or hypotrophy of the new cartilage. Long-term follow-up and more parameters (81,207) need to be considered in comparative studies.…”