Ageing knee
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Biomechanics of the Ageing Human Knee
IRAS ID
181630
Contact name
Karl Bates
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Liverpool
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 7 months, 1 days
Research summary
Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is among the most prevalent disorders in the elderly population, and causes structural degeneration, which ultimately leads to a decline in function. Although there is a significant body of research that has focused on the pathogenesis of OA, most research has focused on the degeneration of articular cartilage. However, it is now well-established that numerous tissues within the knee joint may be affected by OA including subchondral bone and ligaments. Ageing is thought to alter the biochemical and mechanical properties of each of these tissues, however data is sparse (Rousseau et al., 2012, Yuan et al., 2014). The absence of this critical data also limits the efficacy of non-invasive computational approaches that might otherwise provide valuable insight into changes in form and function in the knee joint during ageing.
This study aims to develop and refine a new workflow to characterise the morphological and mechanical changes incurred during healthy and non-healthy ageing of musculoskeletal tissues of the knee joint. The impacts of these changes on limb function will also be assessed using computer models, specifically finite element models. The first stage of the project will involve correlating biochemical and histological markers of ageing with the biomechanical properties of both hard (subchondral bone plate) and soft tissues (cruciate ligaments). These samples will be from cadaveric samples donated with full ethical permission through a number of biobanks and NHS facilities. This experimental data will support the second stage of the project: development of a Finite Element (FE) model of the OA knee adequately representing the material properties of the tissues of the ageing knee joint. This proposed study will significantly enhance our understanding of normal and pathological knee function.
REC name
North of Scotland Research Ethics Committee 1
REC reference
15/NS/0053
Date of REC Opinion
2 Jul 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion