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Near Infrared Spectroscopic Mapping of Functional Properties of Equine Articular Cartilage

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A Data Descriptor to this article was published on 30 August 2019

Abstract

Mechanical properties of articular cartilage are vital for normal joint function, which can be severely compromised by injuries. Quantitative characterization of cartilage injuries, and evaluation of cartilage stiffness and thickness by means of conventional arthroscopy is poorly reproducible or impossible. In this study, we demonstrate the potential of near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy for predicting and mapping the functional properties of equine articular cartilage at and around lesion sites. Lesion and non-lesion areas of interests (AI, N = 44) of equine joints (N = 5) were divided into grids and NIR spectra were acquired from all grid points (N = 869). Partial least squares (PLS) regression was used to investigate the correlation between the absorbance spectra and thickness, equilibrium modulus, dynamic modulus, and instantaneous modulus at the grid points of 41 AIs. Subsequently, the developed PLS models were validated with spectral data from the grid points of 3 independent AIs. Significant correlations were obtained between spectral data and cartilage thickness (R 2 = 70.3%, p < 0.0001), equilibrium modulus (R 2 = 67.8%, p < 0.0001), dynamic modulus (R 2 = 68.9%, p < 0.0001) and instantaneous modulus (R 2 = 41.8%, p < 0.0001). Relatively low errors were observed in the predicted thickness (5.9%) and instantaneous modulus (9.0%) maps. Thus, if well implemented, NIR spectroscopy could enable arthroscopic evaluation and mapping of cartilage functional properties at and around lesion sites.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge Dr Jouni Hiltunen, Dr Juha Toivonen and Prof Adekunle Oloyede for assistance with the optical instrumentation. This study was funded by the Academy of Finland (project 267551, University of Eastern Finland) and Kuopio University Hospital (VTR projects 5041750 and 5041744, PY210 Clinical Neurophysiology). Dr Afara would like to acknowledge the Finnish Cultural Foundation (00160079).

Author Contributions

J.K. Sarin was involved in equine ex vivo study, data acquisition, analyses and was the main writer of the manuscript. M. Amissah contributed in the reference measurements. H. Brommer contributed in equine ex vivo study, equine arthroscopies. D. Argüelles contributed in equine ex vivo study, equine arthroscopies. J. Töyräs contributed in the study conception, equine ex vivo study, and interpretation of data. I.O. Afara contributed in the study conception, equine ex vivo study, data analyses and interpretation. All authors contributed in the preparation and approval of the final submitted manuscript.

Conflict of Interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest in the execution of this study and preparation of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Physics, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland

    Jaakko K. Sarin, Juha Töyräs & Isaac O. Afara

  2. Diagnostic Imaging Center, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland

    Jaakko K. Sarin, Juha Töyräs & Isaac O. Afara

  3. Department of Physics and Mathematics, University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu, Finland

    Michael Amissah

  4. Department of Equine Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands

    Harold Brommer

  5. School of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinary Teaching Hospital, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    David Argüelles

  6. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Elizade University, Ondo, Nigeria

    Isaac O. Afara

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  1. Jaakko K. Sarin
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Correspondence to Jaakko K. Sarin.

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Associate Editor Kent Leach oversaw the review of this article.

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Sarin, J.K., Amissah, M., Brommer, H. et al. Near Infrared Spectroscopic Mapping of Functional Properties of Equine Articular Cartilage. Ann Biomed Eng 44, 3335–3345 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-016-1659-6

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