Identification of cartilage injury using quantitative multiphoton microscopy

This study demonstrates the first application of MPM for evaluating cellular-scale cartilage injury in situ in live tissue, with clinical potential for detecting early cartilage damage. With this technique, we were able to uniquely observe two death patterns resulting from the same compressive loading, which may be related to local variability in matrix structure. These results also demonstrate proof-of-concept MPM diagnostic use in detecting subtle and early cartilage damage not detectable in any other way.