Is cartilage sGAG content related to early changes in cartilage disease? Implications for interpretation of dGEMRIC.
OBJECTIVE: This study investigates sulphated glycosaminoglycans (sGAG) content changes in early osteoarthritis (OA), and whether contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of cartilage in vitro may identify early event of OA pathology. METHOD: Osteochondral plugs from patients with hip OA or femoral neck fracture (reference group) were collected and analysed by 1.5 T MRI with ΔR1 as a me