MR Imaging of the Articular Cartilage of the Knee

Douglas W Goodwin

doi:10.1055/s-0029-1242187

Seminars in Musculoskeletal Radiology, Table of Contents

Semin Musculoskelet Radiol 2009; 13(4): 326-339
DOI: 10.1055/s-0029-1242187

MR Imaging of the Articular Cartilage of the Knee

Douglas W. Goodwin¹ ^, ²

¹Department of Radiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, New Hampshire
²Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Dartmouth Medical School, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, New Hampshire

Abstract

ABSTRACT

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of the knee is capable of accurately identifying and characterizing cartilage injuries and degeneration. Optimal cartilage imaging requires an understanding of the relationship between cartilage structure and the MR image, acquisition of images with adequate resolution, a purposeful interrogation of the images by a reviewer possessing an understanding of the appearance of tissue pathology as well as common pitfalls and artifacts, and finally, the accurate and consistent reporting of results.

KEYWORDS

Knee - articular cartilage - magnetic resonance imaging - T2 - magic angle

Full Text

References

REFERENCES

1 Curl W W, Krome J, Gordon E S, Rushing J, Smith B P, Poehling G G. Cartilage injuries: a review of 31,516 knee arthroscopies. Arthroscopy. 1997; 13(4) 456-460
2 Link T M, Steinbach L S, Ghosh S et al.. Osteoarthritis: MR imaging findings in different stages of disease and correlation with clinical findings. Radiology. 2003; 226(2) 373-381
3 Oberlander M A, Shalvoy R M, Hughston J C. The accuracy of the clinical knee examination documented by arthroscopy. A prospective study. Am J Sports Med. 1993; 21(6) 773-778
4 Bredella M A, Tirman P F, Peterfy C G et al.. Accuracy of T2-weighted fast spin-echo MR imaging with fat saturation in detecting cartilage defects in the knee: comparison with arthroscopy in 130 patients. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1999; 172(4) 1073-1080
5 Disler D G, McCauley T R, Kelman C G et al.. Fat-suppressed three-dimensional spoiled gradient-echo MR imaging of hyaline cartilage defects in the knee: comparison with standard MR imaging and arthroscopy. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1996; 167(1) 127-132
6 Potter H G, Linklater J M, Allen A A, Hannafin J A, Haas S B. Magnetic resonance imaging of articular cartilage in the knee. An evaluation with use of fast-spin-echo imaging. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1998; 80(9) 1276-1284
7 Recht M P, Piraino D W, Paletta G A, Schils J P, Belhobek G H. Accuracy of fat-suppressed three-dimensional spoiled gradient-echo FLASH MR imaging in the detection of patellofemoral articular cartilage abnormalities. Radiology. 1996; 198(1) 209-212
8 Friemert B, Oberländer Y, Schwarz W et al.. Diagnosis of chondral lesions of the knee joint: can MRI replace arthroscopy? A prospective study. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2004; 12(1) 58-64
9 McNicholas M J, Brooksbank A J, Walker C M. Observer agreement analysis of MRI grading of knee osteoarthritis. J R Coll Surg Edinb. 1999; 44(1) 31-33
10 Buckwalter J A, Mankin H J. Articular cartilage, part I: tissue design and chondrocyte-matrix interactions. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1997; 79 600-611
11 Jeffery A K, Blunn G W, Archer C W, Bentley G. Three-dimensional collagen architecture in bovine articular cartilage. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 1991; 73(5) 795-801
12 Clark J M. Variation of collagen fiber alignment in a joint surface: a scanning electron microscope study of the tibial plateau in dog, rabbit, and man. J Orthop Res. 1991; 9(2) 246-257
13 Kääb M J, Gwynn I A, Nötzli H P. Collagen fibre arrangement in the tibial plateau articular cartilage of man and other mammalian species. J Anat. 1998; 193(Pt 1) 23-34
14 Goodwin D W, Zhu H, Dunn J F. In vitro MR imaging of hyaline cartilage: correlation with scanning electron microscopy. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2000; 174(2) 405-409
15 Goodwin D W, Wadghiri Y Z, Zhu H, Vinton C J, Smith E D, Dunn J F. Macroscopic structure of articular cartilage of the tibial plateau: influence of a characteristic matrix architecture on MRI appearance. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2004; 182(2) 311-318
16 Xia Y, Farquhar T, Burton-Wurster N, Lust G. Origin of cartilage laminae in MRI. J Magn Reson Imaging. 1997; 7(5) 887-894
17 Mlynárik V, Degrassi A, Toffanin R, Vittur F, Cova M, Pozzi-Mucelli R S. Investigation of laminar appearance of articular cartilage by means of magnetic resonance microscopy. Magn Reson Imaging. 1996; 14(4) 435-442
18 Dardzinski B J, Mosher T J, Li S, Van Slyke M A, Smith M B. Spatial variation of T2 in human articular cartilage. Radiology. 1997; 205(2) 546-550
19 Gründer W, Wagner M, Werner A. MR-microscopic visualization of anisotropic internal cartilage structures using the magic angle technique. Magn Reson Med. 1998; 39(3) 376-382
20 Goodwin D W, Wadghiri Y Z, Dunn J F. Micro-imaging of articular cartilage: T2, proton density, and the magic angle effect. Acad Radiol. 1998; 5(11) 790-798
21 Yoshioka H, Stevens K, Genovese M, Dillingham M F, Lang P. Articular cartilage of knee: normal patterns at MR imaging that mimic disease in healthy subjects and patients with osteoarthritis. Radiology. 2004; 231(1) 31-38
22 Buckwalter J A, Mankin H J. Articular cartilage, part II: degeneration and osteoarthrosis, repair, regeneration, and transplantation. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1997; 79 612-632
23 Reeder S B, Pelc N J, Alley M T, Gold G E. Rapid MR imaging of articular cartilage with steady-state free precession and multipoint fat-water separation. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2003; 180(2) 357-362
24 Hargreaves B A, Gold G E, Beaulieu C F, Vasanawala S S, Nishimura D G, Pauly J M. Comparison of new sequences for high-resolution cartilage imaging. Magn Reson Med. 2003; 49(4) 700-709
25 Hargreaves B A, Gold G E, Lang P K et al.. MR imaging of articular cartilage using driven equilibrium. Magn Reson Med. 1999; 42 695-703
26 Gold G E, Hargreaves B A, Beaulieu C F. Protocols in sports magnetic resonance imaging. Top Magn Reson Imaging. 2003; 14(1) 3-23
27 Rubin D A, Harner C D, Costello J M. Treatable chondral injuries in the knee: frequency of associated focal subchondral edema. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2000; 174(4) 1099-1106
28 De Smet A A, Fisher D R, Graf B K, Lange R H. Osteochondritis dissecans of the knee: value of MR imaging in determining lesion stability and the presence of articular cartilage defects. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1990; 155(3) 549-553
29 Messner K, Maletius W. Eighteen- to twenty-five-year follow-up after acute partial anterior cruciate ligament rupture. Am J Sports Med. 1999; 27(4) 455-459
30 Finsterbush A, Frankl U, Matan Y, Mann G. Secondary damage to the knee after isolated injury of the anterior cruciate ligament. Am J Sports Med. 1990; 18(5) 475-479
31 Felson D T, Chaisson C E, Hill C L et al.. The association of bone marrow lesions with pain in knee osteoarthritis. Ann Intern Med. 2001; 134(7) 541-549
32 Saddik D, McNally E G, Richardson M. MRI of Hoffa's fat pad. Skeletal Radiol. 2004; 33(8) 433-444
33 Brittberg M, Winalski C S. Evaluation of cartilage injuries and repair. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2003; 85-A(Suppl 2) 58-69
34 Minas T, Nehrer S. Current concepts in the treatment of articular cartilage defects. Orthopedics. 1997; 20(6) 525-538
35 Buckwalter J A, Mankin H J. Articular cartilage repair and transplantation. Arthritis Rheum. 1998; 41(8) 1331-1342

Douglas W GoodwinM.D.

Department of Radiology

One Medical Center Dr., Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, NH 03756

Email: douglas.goodwin@hitchcock.org