Damage or injury of the knee meniscus leads to progressive degeneration of articular cartilage in which is characteristic of osteoarthritis. We propose that a meniscal autograft constructed from iliotibial fascia will inhibit cartilage degeneration in the knee following meniscectomy. In this 24-month proposed project, we plan to quantify the following in the canine knee following meniscectomy (n=15), and following autograft implantation (n=15): (1) mechanical properties of articular cartilage; (2) material properties of regenerate menisci; and (3) the 3-D geometry of native and regenerate meniscus using MR microscopy. In this manner, we will compare the state of cartilage degeneration, and parameters of meniscal function and anatomy, for differences between """"""""untreated"""""""" and """"""""treated"""""""" surgical groups. The long-term objectives are to develop quantitative methods to evaluate the efficacy of the proposed meniscal autograft, as well as other surgical treatments (e.g., allograft) for preventing osteoarthritis in the knee joint. Experimental evidence of such treatments which are successful for inhibiting degeneration in an animal model would promote options for clinical treatment.
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