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. 2023 Feb 24;10(3):182.
doi: 10.3390/vetsci10030182.

Histological Findings and T2 Relaxation Time in Canine Menisci of Elderly Dogs-An Ex Vivo Study in Stifle Joints

Lena Bunzendahl  1   2 , Amir Moussavi  2 , Martina Bleyer  3 , Jana Dehnert  2 , Susann Boretius  2 , Stephan Neumann  1
Affiliations

Histological Findings and T2 Relaxation Time in Canine Menisci of Elderly Dogs-An Ex Vivo Study in Stifle Joints

Lena Bunzendahl et al. Vet Sci. .

Abstract

Osteoarthritis is a chronic disease that often affects the canine stifle joint. Due to their biomechanical function, the menisci in the canine stifle play an important role in osteoarthritis. They compensate for the incongruence in the joint and distribute and minimize compressive loads, protecting the hyaline articular cartilage from damage. Meniscal degeneration favors the development and progression of stifle joint osteoarthritis. Qualitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the current golden standard for detecting meniscal changes, but it has limitations in detecting early signs of meniscal degeneration. A quantitative MRI offers new options for detecting early structural changes. T2 mapping can especially visualize structural changes such as altered collagen structures and water content, as well as deviations in proteoglycan content. This study evaluated T2 mapping and performed a histological scoring of menisci in elderly dogs that had no or only low radiographic osteoarthritis grades. A total of 16 stifles from 8 older dogs of different sex and breed underwent ex vivo magnet resonance imaging, including a T2 mapping pulse sequence with multiple echoes. A histological analysis of corresponding menisci was performed using a modified scoring system. The mean T2 relaxation time was 18.2 ms and the mean histological score was 4.25. Descriptive statistics did not reveal a correlation between T2 relaxation time and histological score. Ex vivo T2 mapping of canine menisci did not demonstrate histological changes, suggesting that early meniscal degeneration can be present in the absence of radiological signs of osteoarthritis, including no significant changes in T2 relaxation time.

Keywords: T2; canine; functional imaging; histological score; magnetic resonance imaging; meniscal degeneration; menisci; osteoarthritis; stifle.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Modified radiographic osteoarthritis grading system for dogs [17] according to the Kellgren–Lawrence system [18], and exemplary pictures for each osteoarthritis grade. In this study, only dogs with grade 0 and grade 1 were included.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Modified histological scoring system according to [23,24].
Figure 3
Figure 3
(A) Meniscal T2 values in both medial and lateral menisci. There was no significant difference between medial and lateral menisci (p = 0.13). (B) Sagittal magnitude image of a stifle joint and corresponding T2 map. Color chart on the right side represents T2 relaxation times in ms.
Figure 3
Figure 3
(A) Meniscal T2 values in both medial and lateral menisci. There was no significant difference between medial and lateral menisci (p = 0.13). (B) Sagittal magnitude image of a stifle joint and corresponding T2 map. Color chart on the right side represents T2 relaxation times in ms.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Total histological degeneration score in medial and lateral menisci. There was a significantly higher degeneration score in medial menisci than in lateral menisci (p = 0.006).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Scoring of collagen content showed no significant differences between medial and lateral menisci (A). Scoring of proteoglycan content showed a higher score in lateral menisci (B). Scoring of cellularity showed no significant differences between medial and lateral menisci (C). Scoring of collagen organization showed no significant differences between medial and lateral menisci (D).
Figure 6
Figure 6
T2 relaxation time versus total histological score in lateral (A) and medial (B) menisci. There was no significant correlation between T2 values and histological scores.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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