Statistical shape modeling describes variation in tibia and femur surface geometry between Control and Incidence groups from the Osteoarthritis Initiative database

Abstract

We hypothesize that variability in knee subchondral bone surface geometry will differentiate between patients at risk and those not at risk for developing osteoarthritis (OA) and suggest that statistical shape modeling (SSM) methods form the basis for developing a diagnostic tool for predicting the onset of OA. Using a subset of clinical knee MRI data from the osteoarthritis initiative (OAI), the objectives of this study were to (1) utilize SSM to compactly and efficiently describe variability in knee subchondral bone surface geometry and (2) determine the efficacy of SSM and rigid body transformations to distinguish between patients who are not expected to develop osteoarthritis (i.e. Control group) and those with clinical risk factors for OA (i.e. Incidence group). Quantitative differences in femur and tibia surface geometry were demonstrated between groups, although differences in knee joint alignment measures were not statistically significant, suggesting that variability in individual bone geometry may play a greater role in determining joint space geometry and mechanics. SSM provides a means of explicitly describing complete articular surface geometry and allows the complex spatial variation in joint surface geometry and joint congruence between healthy subjects and those with clinical risk of developing or existing signs of OA to be statistically demonstrated.

An Atlas-Based Approach to Study Morphological Differences in Human Femoral Cartilage Between Subjects from Incidence and Progression Cohorts: MRI Data from Osteoarthritis Initiative

“…The authors use SSM to effectively characterize the variability in the subchondral bone region in femur and tibia. They also show the potential of combining SSM with rigid body transformation to distinguish subjects at risk and no risk of developing OA (Bredbenner et al, 2010).…”

Is axial shape of distal femur different in normal and osteoarthritic female patients?

“…The main reasons for the wide use of statistical shape analysis in medicine are advances in imaging technology and the tendency to investigate the effects of diseases and the environmental factors that affect the structure of the organ or organism. [1,7] Bredbenner et al [8] demonstrated in their study that quantitative differences in tibia and femur geometry were observed between surface models based on clinical MRI data of subjects who were at risk of developing OA and control subjects. They stated that statistical shape analysis methods provide an innovative and important step towards describing differences in knee surface and joint space geometry that may directly lead to the understanding of and differentiation between the causes and effects of OA.…”

Osteoarthritis – the role of cartilage and capability of modification of the course of disease

“…Do rozwoju zmian zwyrodnieniowych predysponuje zwłaszcza odmiana budowy głowy kości udowej, w której przejście głowy w szyjkę kości udowej spłasz-cza się, zamiast osiągać swoją prawidłową wklęsłość, czego efektem jest kształt przypominający uchwyt staromodnego pistoletu (pistol grip deformity). Z częstszym niż w populacji ogólnej występowaniem osteoartrozy zwią-zane są też takie zmiany, jak: zbyt szeroka szyjka kości udowej, nieprawidłowości kształtu i osi kości udowej, piszczeli, nasad obu tych kości, a także nieprawidłowości stawu rzepkowo-udowego [19][20][21][22][23].…”