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Quantitative MRI in the evaluation of articular cartilage health: reproducibility and variability with a focus on T2 mapping

  • Experimental Study
  • Published:
Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy Aims and scope

Abstract

Purpose

Early diagnosis of cartilage degeneration and longitudinal tracking of cartilage health including repair following surgical intervention would benefit from the ability to detect and monitor changes of the articular cartilage non-invasively and before gross morphological alterations appear.

Methods

Quantitative MR imaging has shown promising results with various imaging biomarkers such as T2 mapping, T1 rho and dGEMRIC demonstrating sensitivity in the detection of biochemical alterations within tissues of interest. However, acquiring accurate and clinically valuable quantitative data has proven challenging, and the reproducibility of the quantitative mapping technique and its values are essential. Although T2 mapping has been the focus in this discussion, all quantitative mapping techniques are subject to the same issues including variability in the imaging protocol, unloading and exercise, analysis, scanner and coil, calculation methods, and segmentation and registration concerns.

Results

The causes for variability between time points longitudinally in a patient, among patients, and among centres need to be understood further and the issues addressed.

Conclusions

The potential clinical applications of quantitative mapping are vast, but, before the clinical community can take full advantage of this tool, it must be automated, standardized, validated, and have proven reproducibility prior to its implementation into the standard clinical care routine.

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Acknowledgments

The Steadman-Philippon Research Institute is a 501(c)(3) non-profit institution supported financially by private donations and corporate support from the following entities: Smith and Nephew Endoscopy, Inc., Arthrex, Inc., Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc., ConMed Linvatec, Inc., Össur Americas, Inc., Small Bone Innovations, Inc., Opedix, Inc., Evidence Based Apparel, and Sonoma Orthopedics, Inc.

Conflict of interest

The authors report no conflict of interest in regard to this manuscript.

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  1. Steadman Philippon Research Institute, 181 W Meadow Dr, Suite 1000, Vail, CO, 81657, USA

    Rachel K. Surowiec, Erin P. Lucas & Charles P. Ho

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  1. Rachel K. Surowiec
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Correspondence to Charles P. Ho.

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Surowiec, R.K., Lucas, E.P. & Ho, C.P. Quantitative MRI in the evaluation of articular cartilage health: reproducibility and variability with a focus on T2 mapping. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 22, 1385–1395 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-013-2714-6

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