Cartilage-on-cartilage contact: effect of compressive loading on tissue deformations and structural integrity of bovine articular cartilage

ObjectiveThis study aims to characterize the deformations in articular cartilage under compressive loading and link these to changes in the extracellular matrix constituents described by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) relaxation times in an experimental model mimicking in vivo cartilage-on-cartilage contact.DesignQuantitative MRI images, T1, T2 and T1ρ relaxation times, were acquired at 9.4T from bovine femoral osteochondral explants before...