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. 2023 Nov;31(11):1515-1523.
doi: 10.1016/j.joca.2023.07.011. Epub 2023 Aug 22.

Associations between weight change, knee subcutaneous fat and cartilage thickness in overweight and obese individuals: 4-Year data from the osteoarthritis initiative

Gabby B Joseph  1 , Melia Takakusagi  2 , Gino Arcilla  2 , John A Lynch  3 , Valentina Pedoia  2 , Sharmila Majumdar  2 , Nancy E Lane  4 , Michael C Nevitt  3 , Charles E McCulloch  3 , Thomas M Link  2
Affiliations

Associations between weight change, knee subcutaneous fat and cartilage thickness in overweight and obese individuals: 4-Year data from the osteoarthritis initiative

Gabby B Joseph et al. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2023 Nov.

Abstract

Objective: To assess (i) the impact of changes in body weight on changes in joint-adjacent subcutaneous fat (SCF) and cartilage thickness over 4 years and (ii) the relation between changes in joint-adjacent SCF and knee cartilage thickness.

Design: Individuals from the Osteoarthritis Initiative (total=399) with > 10% weight gain (n=100) and > 10% weight loss (n=100) over 4 years were compared to a matched control cohort with less than 3% change in weight (n=199). 3.0T Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of the right knee was performed at baseline and after 4 years to quantify joint-adjacent SCF and cartilage thickness. Linear regression models were used to evaluate the associations between the (i) weight change group and 4-year changes in both knee SCF and cartilage thickness, and (ii) 4-year changes in knee SCF and in cartilage thickness. Analyses were adjusted for age, sex, baseline body mass index (BMI), tibial diameter (and weight change group in analysis (ii)).

Results: Individuals who lost weight over 4-years had significantly less joint-adjacent SCF (beta range, medial/lateral joint sides: 2.2-4.2 mm, p < 0.001) than controls; individuals who gained weight had significantly greater joint-adjacent SCF than controls (beta range: -1.4 to -3.9 mm, p < 0.001). No statistically significant associations were found between weight change and cartilage thickness change. However, increases in joint-adjacent SCF over 4 years were significantly associated with decreases in cartilage thickness (p = 0.04).

Conclusions: Weight change was associated with joint-adjacent SCF, but not with change in cartilage thickness. However, 4-year increases in joint-adjacent SCF were associated with decreases in cartilage thickness independent of baseline BMI and weight change group.

Keywords: Cartilage thickness; Knee subcutaneous fat; MRI; Weight change.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest The authors declared no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Participant Selection from the OAI. Abbreviations: KL: Kellgren-Lawrence, BMI Body Mass Index.
Figure 2:
Figure 2:
A coronal reformation of the dual echo steady state (DESS) sequence. Subcutaneous fat (SCF) measurements are shown at the medial femur, medial tibia and lateral femur and lateral tibia. The tip of the medial tibial spine is used to define the axial slice level, on which medial and lateral measurements are taken.
Figure 3:
Figure 3:
Changes in subcutaneous fat (SCF) by weight change group over 4 years. Adjusted means are shown (adjustments: age, sex, BMI, race, tibia diameter) with error bars representing 95% confidence intervals.
Figure 4:
Figure 4:
Association between changes in medial femur SCF and average cartilage thickness over 4 years (beta: 1mm increase in medial femur SCF was associated with 0.001mm decrease average in thickness (standardized beta = −0.14, p=0.04)). The regression line is adjusted for age, sex, BMI, race, tibia diameter, and weight change group. The shaded area represents the 95% confidence interval. Adjusted means; Error Bars represent 95% CIs
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