title: Progression of cartilage damage and meniscal pathology over 30 months is associated with an increase in radiographic tibiofemoral joint space narrowing in persons with knee OA--the MOST study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the association of MRI-assessed worsening of tibiofemoral cartilage damage, meniscal damage, meniscal extrusion, separately and together, with progression of radiographic joint space narrowing (JSN).
  
  
  METHODS
  The Multicenter Osteoarthitis Study (MOST) Study is a cohort study of subjects with or at risk for knee osteoarthritis (OA). Knees with radiographic OA Kellgren-Lawrence grade 2 at baseline and with baseline and 30-month 1.0 T MRIs were selected for reading using the WORMS system for cartilage damage, meniscal damage, and meniscal extrusion. The association of worsening of cartilage damage, meniscal damage, and/or meniscal extrusion with increases in the JSN was performed using logistic regression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 276 knees (one per subject) were included (women 68.5%, mean age 62.9 ± 7.8, mean body mass index (BMI) 30.2 ± 5.0). Worsening of each MRI feature was associated with any increase in JSN (P < 0.01). Worsening of cartilage damage was more frequently observed than worsening of meniscal damage and extrusion, and was significantly associated with both slow and fast progression of JSN. An increasing risk of JSN worsening was associated with increasing number of worsening MRI features (P for trend < 0.0001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Worsening of tibiofemoral cartilage damage, meniscal damage, and meniscal extrusion are independent predictors of JSN progression in the same compartment. Worsening of cartilage damage is more frequently observed in JSN when compared to meniscal worsening. A strong cumulative effect on JSN progression is observed for worsening of more than one MRI feature.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Quantitative Imaging Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Radiology, Hospital do Coração (HCor) and Teleimagem, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil. Electronic address: michelcrema@gmail.com.
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Crema
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Nevitt
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Quantitative Imaging Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Guermazi
authors.affiliation: Clinical Epidemiology Research Unit, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: D T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Felson
authors.affiliation: Clinical Epidemiology Research Unit, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Lynch
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Quantitative Imaging Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Marra
authors.affiliation: University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Torner
authors.affiliation: University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL, USA.
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Lewis
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Quantitative Imaging Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Radiology, University of Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany.
authors.forename: F W
authors.initials: FW
authors.lastname: Roemer
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002357:Cartilage Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000473:pathology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008592:Menisci, Tibial / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D020370:Osteoarthritis, Knee / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011859:Radiography
keywords: Cartilage; Joint space narrowing; Knee; Magnetic resonance imaging; Osteoarthritis