Farouk Khury, Moritz Oltmanns, Theresa Unseld, Michael Fuchs, Heiko Reichel, Martin Faschingbauer
BACKGROUND: Although articular wear has been thoroughly investigated, the effects of abnormal limb alignment on cartilage degeneration over time remain poorly understood. An exact assessment of the correlation between lower limb alignment abnormalities and MRI-observed articular degradation may be helpful for understanding the progression of osteoarthritis and planning future treatment. QUESTION/PURPOSE: In patients with moderate to advanced osteoarthritis, (1) is there a correlation between overall alignment of the knee and the location of cartilage degradation over time, as measured by cartilage metrics on MRI? (2) Is there a correlation between tibial alignment and the location of cartilage degradation over time, as measured by cartilage metrics on MRI? (3) Is there a correlation between femoral alignment and the location of cartilage degradation over time, as measured by cartilage metrics on MRI? METHODS: Between April 2020 and September 2022, we retrospectively evaluated 3106 patients aged 45 to 79 years who were at risk of experiencing knee osteoarthritis...
September 13, 2023: Clinical Orthopaedics and related Research