title: The relationship between longitudinal serum leptin measures and measures of magnetic resonance imaging-assessed knee joint damage in a population of mid-life women.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Serum leptin measures are associated with radiographic knee osteoarthritis, but no studies have examined leptin levels with respect to different measures of knee joint damage from MRI.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants in the Michigan Study of Women's Health Across the Nation underwent bilateral knee MRIs at follow-up visit 11 for assessment of cartilage defects, bone marrow lesions, osteophytes, meniscal tears, synovitis and joint effusion. Serum leptin measures were available from baseline, follow-up visits 1 and 3-7.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Baseline serum leptin levels were associated with greater odds of having more severe knee joint damage at follow-up visit 11 after adjustment for age, smoking status, menopause status and body mass index residuals. The greatest effect was observed for osteophytes; a 5 ng/ml increase in baseline leptin was associated with 24% higher odds of having larger osteophytes (95% CI 1.17 to 1.32). Correlations with baseline serum leptin were greatest for MRI-assessed osteophytes (r=0.41), followed by effusion (r=0.32), synovitis (r=0.30), cartilage defects (r=0.28), bone marrow lesions (r=0.24) and meniscal abnormalities (r=0.21).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Leptin levels 10 years prior to MRI assessment were associated with the presence of cartilage defects, bone marrow lesions, osteophytes, meniscal tears, synovitis and effusion among a population of middle-aged women. Understanding the role that leptin plays in the joint degradation process is critical for development of more targeted interventions for osteoarthritis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan School of Public Health, , Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
authors.forename: Carrie A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Karvonen-Gutierrez
authors.forename: Siobán D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Harlow
authors.forename: Jon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jacobson
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mancuso
authors.forename: Yebin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jiang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000473:pathology*; D020738:Leptin / Q000097:blood*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008875:Middle Aged; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology; D015995:Prevalence
chemical_list: D020738:Leptin
keywords: Epidemiology; Knee Osteoarthritis; Osteoarthritis