Osteoarthritis year 2013 in review: imaging

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics and Musculoskeletal Research
• Medical Imaging and Radiology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Osteoarthritis (OA) is a significant musculoskeletal condition requiring advanced imaging for research and clinical assessment.
• Traditional imaging modalities like radiography and MRI are mainstays in OA research, but emerging techniques offer greater insight.
• Understanding trends in OA imaging research is crucial for developing more effective diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review recent original research on osteoarthritis (OA) imaging.
• To identify emerging trends and significant advances in OA imaging modalities and applications.
• To analyze the focus of current OA imaging research on specific joints and tissues.

Main Methods:

• A PubMed database search was conducted for OA imaging publications between March 2012 and March 2013.
• Query terms included 'OA' combined with various imaging modalities (radiography, MRI, ultrasound, CT, nuclear medicine).
• Abstracts were screened to exclude non-original research, focusing on studies using routine clinical imaging measures.

Main Results:

• MRI (118) and radiography (129) dominated OA imaging studies, with fewer using CT (35) and ultrasound (23).
• Parametric MRI mapping techniques, particularly T2*- and T1-rho, showed increased research activity.
• The knee (210) was the most studied joint, followed by the hip (106) and hand (29), with a focus on cartilage (173) and bone (119) evaluation.

Conclusions:

• Imaging remains central to OA research, with ongoing focus on traditional methods.
• Compositional MRI techniques are increasingly applied in translational and clinical OA research, particularly for the knee and hip.
• Development of novel imaging methods aims for enhanced specificity and responsiveness to joint changes, including neuroimaging for pain.