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Updated: Aug 20, 2026
Biotribological Testing and Analysis of Articular Cartilage Sliding against Metal for Implants
Published on: May 14, 2020
A pilot, two-year longitudinal study of the interrelationship between trabecular bone and articular cartilage in the
Gabrielle Blumenkrantz1, Colleen T Lindsey, Timothy C Dunn
1Musculoskeletal and Quantitative Imaging Research Group, Department of Radiology, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA. gabby@mrsc.ucsf.edu
Objective:
To examine the relationship between structural changes of trabecular bone and cartilage, in patients with varying degrees of osteoarthritis (OA) over 2 years, using magnetic resonance imaging.
Methods:
High-resolution, axial images were acquired for assessing trabecular bone structure, using a 3-D fast gradient-echo sequence. High-resolution, fat-suppressed, sagittal images were acquired for assessing cartilage structure, using a 3-D spoiled gradient-echo sequence. In a subset of the patients, sagittal images were acquired for measuring T(2) relaxation time, using a 2-D dual-echo spin echo sequence.
Results:
A large variation in bone and cartilage parameters is evident among individual subjects in each group, however, group-specific means demonstrate decreasing trends (in bone and cartilage parameters) in osteoarthritic subjects (especially in mild OA subjects). The mean T(2) increased significantly (P<0.05) between the baseline and follow-up exams for all cartilage compartments except the lateral tibia. A positive relationship was established between cartilage changes and localized bone changes closest to the joint line, while a negative relationship was established between cartilage changes and global bone changes farthest from the joint line.
Conclusion:
This study quantifies the changes in bone and cartilage structural parameters over time, and demonstrates a longitudinal relationship between the morphological changes in bone and cartilage structure in patients with varying degrees of OA. Although a large variation of bone and cartilage changes is apparent among subjects, significant trends are evident in a relatively small sample size, with a short follow-up duration.
