Quantitative evaluation of knee cartilage and meniscus destruction in patients with rheumatoid arthritis using T1ρ and T2 mapping

• T1ρ and T2 mapping can assess the destruction of cartilage and menisci in patients with RA.
• The destruction in the knee cartilage is diffused in patients with RA.
• We found no increase in T1ρ and T2 values in menisci, this finding warrants further investigation.
• Destructive mechanisms in cartilage and menisci were different in patients with RA.

ObjectiveTo calculate T1ρ and T2 values of articular cartilage and menisci in knee joints of patients with RA, and compare the values between RA patients and healthy volunteers, to gain insight into the pathogenesis of cartilage and meniscus degradation in patients with RA.Materials and methodsNine patients with RA and knee joints symptoms were enrolled in the study, twenty healthy volunteers without knee joint diseases were included as controls. Sagittal fat-saturated T1ρ and T2 mapping images were obtained on a 3T MR scanner (GE750, GE Healthcare, Waukesha, WI), using a dedicated 8-channel knee coil. In the T1rho mapping sequence, the amplitude of the spin-lock pulse was 500 Hz, spin lock durations = 10/20/30/50 ms. In the T2 mapping sequence,TR/TE were 1794/6.5, 13.4, 27, 40.7 ms. Both sequences were performed with the following parameters: flip angle (FA) = 90°, matrix: 320 × 256, FOV: 16 × 16 cm2, slice thickness: 3 mm, bandwidth: 62.5 kHZ, and a total scan time of 5:11 min. T1ρ- and T2-mapping images were used for the segmentation of the articular cartilage of the patella, femoral trochlea, medial and lateral femoral condyle, medial and lateral tibial plateau. These images were also used for the segmentation of the anterior and posterior horns of the medial and lateral menisci with livewire semi-automatic segmentation algorithm of MATLAB. A Mann–Whitney U test was performed to compare the T1ρ and T2 values of the above mentioned regions between the two groups.ResultsT1ρ (Z = −3.913 to −2.121, P = 0.000–0.034) and T2 (Z = −3.866 to −2.216, P = 0.000–0.026) values of knee cartilage in patients with RA were higher than that in healthy volunteers, except the cartilage of the patella (T1ρ: Z = −1.273, P = 0.203,T2: Z = −0.236, P = 0.814) and lateral tibial plateau (T1ρ:Z = −1.037, P = 0.317). The T1ρ (Z = −1.462 to 0.572, P = 0.095–0.908) and T2 (Z = −1.461 to 0.278, P = 0.153–0.764) values of medial and lateral menisci showed no difference between the two groups.ConclusionPatients with RA exhibit diffuse knee cartilage destruction in the medial and lateral tibiofemoral joints and in the femoral trochlea. However, we found no increase in T1ρ and T2 values in menisci, this finding warrants further investigation.