New Imaging Technique for Arthritis Could Stop Irreversible Damage

Joint pain from the most common form of arthritis continues to be a major disabler for the growing population of middle-aged adults. Until now, there has been no way to diagnose the disease until it reaches an advanced stage, after both irreversible joint damage and debilitating symptoms have already set in.

A new diagnostic technique developed by Tel Aviv University (Tel Aviv, Israel) and New York University (NYU; New York, NY, USA) researchers may keep middle age individuals running through their golden years. The researchers have developed a novel application of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology that provides a non-invasive early diagnosis of osteoarthritis.

"An early diagnosis of arthritis is very, very important, especially for athletes and the aging,” said Prof. Gil Navon, from Tel Aviv University's School of Chemistry, who was a coauthor of the research article published September 2008 online in the journal Proceedings of the [U.S.] National Academy of Science (PNAS). "Standard MRIs will say nothing about a mild pain in the joints from jogging. Our new method detects the very first signs of the disease early, so physicians can step in and advise on appropriate intervention methods.”

Prof. Navon noted that the new technique would be a useful tool for researchers who need to monitor the ability of stem cell treatments to repair damaged cartilage. It will also provide drug researchers with a much-needed way of determining the efficacy of early preventative drug therapies. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis. It wears away cartilage at the ends of bones, leading to spurs, bony protrusions, and a painful build-up of synovial fluid in the joint. It is the number one reason for knee and hip replacement surgery in the United States.

Collagen and proteoglycans are the two main constituents of cartilage. Proteoglycans are composed of a protein and a sugar known as glycosaminoglycan (GAG). In the first stage of osteoarthritis, proteoglycans start to disappear from the cartilage. "Our modifications of existing MRI equipment allow us to directly follow the amount of proteoglycans in the joints now,” Prof. Navon commented. His team's innovation follows the movement of GAG protons to water, providing clinicians with a new, direct way to measure GAG concentration--and provide an early diagnosis.

Although not yet available in clinics, their modified MRI scan costs the same as a conventional MRI procedure and takes about the same time to run, allowing a diagnosis on the same day, the researchers reported. "I'm pretty confident in saying that it's one of the better methods out there for testing cartilage health,” said New York University researcher and co-author Prof. Alexej Jerschow.

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Tel Aviv University
New York University