Fibre reinforcement and mechanical stability in articular cartilage.

Abstract

The gel phase of articular cartilage is reinforced by collagen fibrils. These fibrils have low flexural and torsional stiffness, but are able to provide reinforcement if deformation of the tissue increases their tensile stress. An estimate suggests that the lengths of collagen fibrils in articular cartilage are at least of the same order as their critical length so that tensile stress in the tissue will increase the stress in the fibrils rather than simply pull them out of the gel. In the surface zone the collagen fibrils are oriented so that the efficiency of reinforcement, η, is about 0.6 tangential to the surface; tension in the fibrils is thus able to withstand swelling pressure within the tissue whose condition for stability resembles that of a pressure vessel. Swelling pressure allows the tissue to support applied pressure. An intermediate zone has a roughly isotropic η value of about 0.2, while in the deep zone collagen fibrils appear to tie the cartilage to the subchondral bone; in this deep zone η has a value of about 0.6 perpendicular to the surface direction. There is also some preferred orientation of collagen fibrils in the plane of the articular surface within the surface zone; in patellar cartilage the preferred orientations can be related to the direction of stress which could be generated by movement of the joint.