Quantitative assessment of cartilage surface roughness in osteoarthritis using high frequency ultrasound

Abstract

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common disease which affects nearly 50% of people over age 60. Histologic evaluation suggests that fibrillations approximately 20-150 microns are among the earliest changes in the articular cartilage. We propose a technique to quantify these surface fibrillatory changes in osteoarthritic articular cartilage by considering the angular distribution of the envelope-detected backscattered pressure field from an incident 30-MHz focused transducer. The angular distribution of the scattered acoustic field from an inosonifying source will directly relate to the distribution of surface fibrillatory changes. Data are presented for three different grades (400, 500 and 600 grit) of commercially available emory paper and three samples of osteoarthritic femoral head articular cartilage, which were visually assessed as having smooth, intermediate and rough surfaces, respectively. Our preliminary results indicate a probable monotonic relationship between articular cartilage roughening and the degree of broadening in the angle-dependent pressure amplitude. When applied to the emory paper, the technique indicates sensitivity to differences as small as approximately 5-10 microns in mean roughness. This procedure may provide an extremely sensitive and reproducible means of quantifying and following the cartilage changes observed in early osteoarthritis.

Numerical analysis of cartilage surfaces for osteoarthritis diagnosis using field and feature parameters

“…It is composed of different layer structures which are superficial layer, intermediate 12 collagen network and calcified subchondral bone from surface to bottom [6,7]. Existing 13 studies have revealed that the cartilage surface texture changes with OA progression [8][9][10], 14 and therefore can be used to assess OA conditions. 15…”

Non-Contact Evaluation for Articular Cartilage Using Ultrasound

“…Because of these characteristics, we consider that the signal intensity measurement appropriates for quantitative diagnosis especially at the early stage of joint disease. It has also been pointed out that the amplitude and other characteristics of the reflected waves differ according to the shape and surface roughness of the articular cartilage (8), (23) . In future, we plan to investigate correlation between the signal intensity and various clinical indexes and to enhance the accuracy of the diagnostic method and device.…”

In Vivo Evaluation of the Potential of High-Frequency Ultrasound for Arthroscopic Examination of the Shoulder Joint

“…[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12] With ultrasound, quantitative evaluation of articular cartilage integrity, 11,12 surface roughness and composition is possible. [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]26 We recently introduced an ultrasound arthroscopy technique for clinical assessment of articular cartilage and subchondral bone integrity. 11 In this technique, a high-frequency (40 MHz) intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) catheter is applied into the joint space under arthroscopic guidance.…”