T1rho MRI of Menisci and Cartilage in Mild Osteoarthritis Patients at 3T

Ligong Wang¹, Gregory Chang¹, Michael Recht¹, Ravinder R. Regatte¹

The purpose of this study was to assess T1rho values of cartilage and menisci in patients with mild osteoarthritis (OA) at 3T. Mild OA patients (K-L Score=2, n=15) were scanned. There are significant differences in T1rho relaxation times between femoral-tibial cartilage and the meniscus (anterior, central, and posterior) in both lateral and medial compartments (P < 0.001). T1rho relaxation time of the central meniscus was also increased in the medial compared to lateral compartment (P = 0.033). These data could serve as useful reference standards in future studies and suggest that T1rho MRI might provide useful information about meniscal involvement in OA pathogenesis.