Abstract
Many of the 10–60% of the working-age population with knee pain will develop osteoarthritis (OA), a progressive joint disease with cartilage deterioration and increased disability. In knee OA, exercise decreases joint pain and improves function. Lack of human in vivo monitoring methods has made studies of influence of exercise on cartilage composition impossible. Delayed gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging of cartilage (dGEMRIC) can estimate joint cartilage glycosaminoglycan (GAG) content. It is based on the principle that the negatively charged Gd-DTPA2- ions distribute in the cartilage in an inverse relationship to the GAG content. A high GAG content results in a low contrast medium distribution and a long T1 relaxation time that can be measured by magnetic resonance imaging. We used dGEMRIC in a cross-sectional study in healthy subjects with different exercising levels, and in a longitudinal exercise study in patients at risk for OA.
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