In efforts to study the pathoetiology of post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA), we propose a collaborative, prospective cohort study of 38 patients undergoing primary anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction after ACL rupture. We will assess the longitudinal progression of patient-reported outcomes, knee laxity, MRI-based articular cartilage morphology and composition, and serum-borne biomarkers of cartilage degeneration up to 1 year of follow-up. Furthermore, stem cell mobilization, chemokine and pro-inflammatory cytokine concentrations, and inflammatory cell recruitment into synovial tissue will be measured from intraoperatively-collected samples. We will perform mixed multivariate linear regression modeling to elucidate potentially novel relationships between patient demographics, anatomy, biological factors, and downstream alterations in articular cartilage morphology and composition. We request $200,000 in funding over a two-year duration.
The proposed study will establish novel relationships between intra-articular MSC recruitment, synovial inflammation, biomarkers of cartilage degeneration and joint inflammation, clinical patient factors, and downstream alterations in cartilage composition and morphology to provide novel insights into the pathoetiology of PTOA after ACL injury and reconstruction.