title: Comparison of ultrasound and optical coherence tomography techniques for evaluation of integrity of spontaneously repaired horse cartilage.
abstract: The aim of this study was to compare sensitivity of ultrasound and optical coherence tomography (OCT) techniques for the evaluation of the integrity of spontaneously repaired horse cartilage. Articular surfaces of horse intercarpal joints, featuring both intact tissue and spontaneously healed chondral or osteochondral defects, were imaged ex vivo with arthroscopic ultrasound and laboratory OCT devices. Quantitative ultrasound (integrated reflection coefficient (IRC), apparent integrated backscattering coefficient (AIB) and ultrasound roughness index (URI)) and optical parameters (optical reflection coefficient (ORC), optical roughness index (ORI) and optical backscattering (OBS)) were determined and compared with histological integrity and mechanical properties of the tissue. Spontaneously healed tissue could be quantitatively discerned from the intact tissue with ultrasound and OCT techniques. Furthermore, several significant correlations (p < 0.05) were detected between ultrasound and OCT parameters. Superior resolution of OCT provided a more accurate measurement of cartilage surface roughness, while the ultrasound backscattering from the inner structures of the cartilage matched better with the histological findings. Since the techniques were found to be complementary to each other, dual modality imaging techniques could provide a useful tool for the arthroscopic evaluation of the integrity of articular cartilage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Physics, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland. Tuomas.Viren@uef.fi
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Virén
authors.forename: Y P
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Saarakkala
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pulkkinen
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Tiitu
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Linjama
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kiviranta
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Lammi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Brünott
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Brommer
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Van Weeren
authors.forename: P A J
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Brama
authors.forename: Y P
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Jurvelin
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Töyräs
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001847:Bone Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary; D002357:Cartilage Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000502:physiology; D006734:Horse Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D006736:Horses; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology*