Bioengineering Laboratory - Research: Lower Extremity Injury & Treatment
Current / Recent Projects
| Osteoarthritis following ACL injury and reconstruction |
Summary: Summary: One of the goals of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction is to prevent the progression of osteoarthritis (OA) commonly seen in the ACL-deficient knee. However, clinical evidence suggests that post-traumatic OA persists following surgery. Research studies are currently underway to evaluate the two potential mechanisms of post-traumatic OA in the ACL-injured and ACL-reconstructed knee using three different experimental models. We hypothesize that cartilage damage is due to altered joint contact mechanics and/or due to altered joint lubrication. With these models, the ACL is severed and/or reconstructed. Subsequent cartilage damage is assessed by measuring the structural properties of the cartilage, the frictional characteristics of the cartilage, histology, and markers of cartilage metabolism.
Funding:National Institutes of Health and National Football League Charities.
Publications
| Effects of initial graft tension following ACL reconstruction |
Summary: Summary: One of the goals of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction is to prevent the progression of osteoarthritis (OA) commonly seen in the ACL-deficient knee. However, clinical evidence suggests that post-traumatic OA persists following surgery. Research studies are currently underway to evaluate the two potential mechanisms of post-traumatic OA in the ACL-injured and ACL-reconstructed knee using three different experimental models. We hypothesize that cartilage damage is due to altered joint contact mechanics and/or due to altered joint lubrication. With these models, the ACL is severed and/or reconstructed. Subsequent cartilage damage is assessed by measuring the structural properties of the cartilage, the frictional characteristics of the cartilage, histology, and markers of cartilage metabolism.
Funding:National Institutes of Health.
Publications
| In Vivo Imaging of Cartilage Damage in the Injured Knee |
Summary:The overall motivation for these studies is to develop and implement methods that can be used to quantitatively assess the status of the cartilagenous structures of the knee joint, including MRI and CT imaging. Ligament injury is known to place the knee at high risk for cartilage damage; these techniques will provide additional tools for our ongoing in vivo studies on the initiation and progression of post-traumatic arthritis.
Funding:National Institutes of Health.
Collaborations: Dept. of Diagnostic Imaging and Division of Engineering at Brown University
Publications
Summary:In a collaborative effort with the Department of Evolutionary Biology at Brown University, we are designing and building a high resolution, high-speed x-ray imaging system (which we call “CTX”) for visualizing the complex motion of bones and joints in 3-D during natural activities. The proposed biplanar fluoroscopy facility will advance our research in orthopaedic biomechanics and joint function. Pilot studies are currently underway including a study to demonstrate differences in the gait characteristics of normal, ACL-deficient and ACL-reconstructed knee joints.
Funding:Keck Foundation
Collaborations: Dept of Evolutionary Biology at Brown University
Summary:These studies are evaluating different repair strategies for treating rotator cuff disease using cadaver models and in vivo studies.
Funding:RIH Orthopaedic Foundation
Publications