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A comparison of patellofemoral cartilage morphology and deformation in anterior cruciate ligament deficient versus uninjured knees.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Owusu-Akyaw, KA; Heckelman, LN; Cutcliffe, HC; Sutter, EG; Englander, ZA; Spritzer, CE; Garrett, WE; DeFrate, LE
Published in: J Biomech
January 23, 2018

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) deficient patients have an increased rate of patellofemoral joint (PFJ) osteoarthritis (OA) as compared to the general population. Although the cause of post-injury OA is multi-factorial, alterations in joint biomechanics may predispose patients to cartilage degeneration. This study aimed to compare in vivo PFJ morphology and mechanics between ACL deficient and intact knees in subjects with unilateral ACL ruptures. Eight male subjects underwent baseline MRI scans of both knees. They then performed a series of 60 single-legged hops, followed by a post-exercise MRI scan. This process was repeated for the contralateral knee. The MR images were converted into three-dimensional surface models of cartilage and bone in order to assess cartilage thickness distributions and strain following exercise. Prior to exercise, patellar cartilage was significantly thicker in intact knees as compared to ACL deficient knees by 1.8%. In response to exercise, we observed average patellar cartilage strains of 5.4 ± 1.1% and 2.5 ± 1.4% in the ACL deficient and intact knees, respectively. Importantly, the magnitude of patellar cartilage strain in the ACL deficient knees was significantly higher than in the intact knees. However, while trochlear cartilage experienced a mean strain of 2.4 ± 1.6%, there was no difference in trochlear cartilage strain between the ACL deficient and uninjured knees. In summary, we found that ACL deficiency was associated with decreased patellar cartilage thickness and increased exercise-induced patellar cartilage strain when compared to the uninjured contralateral knees.

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Published In

J Biomech

DOI

EISSN

1873-2380

Publication Date

January 23, 2018

Volume

67

Start / End Page

78 / 83

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Patellofemoral Joint
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Humans
  • Cartilage, Articular
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries
  • Adult
  • 4207 Sports science and exercise
 

Citation

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Owusu-Akyaw, K. A., Heckelman, L. N., Cutcliffe, H. C., Sutter, E. G., Englander, Z. A., Spritzer, C. E., … DeFrate, L. E. (2018). A comparison of patellofemoral cartilage morphology and deformation in anterior cruciate ligament deficient versus uninjured knees. J Biomech, 67, 78–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2017.11.019
Owusu-Akyaw, Kwadwo A., Lauren N. Heckelman, Hattie C. Cutcliffe, E Grant Sutter, Zoë A. Englander, Charles E. Spritzer, William E. Garrett, and Louis E. DeFrate. “A comparison of patellofemoral cartilage morphology and deformation in anterior cruciate ligament deficient versus uninjured knees.J Biomech 67 (January 23, 2018): 78–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2017.11.019.
Owusu-Akyaw KA, Heckelman LN, Cutcliffe HC, Sutter EG, Englander ZA, Spritzer CE, et al. A comparison of patellofemoral cartilage morphology and deformation in anterior cruciate ligament deficient versus uninjured knees. J Biomech. 2018 Jan 23;67:78–83.
Owusu-Akyaw, Kwadwo A., et al. “A comparison of patellofemoral cartilage morphology and deformation in anterior cruciate ligament deficient versus uninjured knees.J Biomech, vol. 67, Jan. 2018, pp. 78–83. Pubmed, doi:10.1016/j.jbiomech.2017.11.019.
Owusu-Akyaw KA, Heckelman LN, Cutcliffe HC, Sutter EG, Englander ZA, Spritzer CE, Garrett WE, DeFrate LE. A comparison of patellofemoral cartilage morphology and deformation in anterior cruciate ligament deficient versus uninjured knees. J Biomech. 2018 Jan 23;67:78–83.
Journal cover image

Published In

J Biomech

DOI

EISSN

1873-2380

Publication Date

January 23, 2018

Volume

67

Start / End Page

78 / 83

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Patellofemoral Joint
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Humans
  • Cartilage, Articular
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries
  • Adult
  • 4207 Sports science and exercise