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DOI:10.2214/AJR.07.3930
AJR 2008; 191:1391-1396
© American Roentgen Ray Society

Original Research

Longitudinal Evaluation of Cartilage Composition of Matrix-Associated Autologous Chondrocyte Transplants with 3-T Delayed Gadolinium-Enhanced MRI of Cartilage

Katja Pinker1, Pavol Szomolanyi2, Goetz C. Welsch1, Tallal C. Mamisch3, Stefan Marlovits4, Andreas Stadlbauer5 and Siegfried Trattnig1

1 Department of Radiology, MR Centre of Excellence, Medical University Vienna, Lazarettg. 14, 1090. Vienna, Austria.
2 Department of Imaging Methods, Institute of Measurement Science, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
3 Orthopedic Surgery Department, Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland.
4 Department of Traumatology, Centre for Joints and Cartilage, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
5 Department of Radiology, Landesklinikum St. Poelten, St. Poelten, Austria.

OBJECTIVE. The purposes of this study were to use delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage (dGEMRIC) to evaluate the zonal distribution of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in normal cartilage and repair tissue and to use 3-T MRI to monitor the GAG content in matrix-associated autologous chondrocyte transplants.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS. Fifteen patients who underwent matrix-associated autologous chondrocyte transplantation in the knee joint underwent MRI at baseline and 3-T follow-up MRI 1 year later. Total and zonal changes in longitudinal relaxivity ({delta}R1) and relative {delta}R1 were calculated for repair tissue and normal hyaline cartilage and compared by use of analysis of variance.

RESULTS. There was a significant difference between the mean {delta}R1 of repair tissue and that of reference cartilage at baseline and follow-up (p < 0.001). There was a significant increase in {delta}R1 value and a decrease in GAG content from the deep layer to the superficial layer in the reference cartilage and almost no variation and significantly higher values for the repair tissue at both examinations. At 1-year follow-up imaging, there was a 22.7% decrease in {delta}R1 value in the deep zone of the transplant.

CONCLUSION. T1 mapping with dGEMRIC at 3 T shows the zonal structure of normal hyaline cartilage, highly reduced zonal variations in repair tissue, and a tendency toward an increase in global and zonal GAG content 1 year after transplantation.

Keywords: 3 T • articular cartilage • autologous chondrocyte transplantation • dGEMRIC • high field strength • MRI


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