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CompletedNCT01578694Updated Mar 27, 2018

Characterization of Proteoglycan Depletion in Femoroacetabular Impingement With T1ρ Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

An interventional study of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) in Femoroacetabular Impingement, Cartilage, Articular and Hip Joint, sponsored by Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. Completed at 1 site in Canada. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 40 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2018-03-27.

Sponsored by Ottawa Hospital Research Institute · Not applicable, Interventional, and Other

From the registry’s dates

  • Registered 3 years 1 month after the study started (first participant enrolled Jul 2007, registered Aug 2010).
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
26
Allocation
Non-randomized
Ages
18 Years to 40 Years
Sex
All
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Study summary

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has proven to be one of the best ways to image articular cartilage. A tremendous amount of research has focused on cartilage imaging with an emphasis of early-osteoarthritis (OA) characterization. One of the techniques which has shown great promise is the imaging technique called T1ρ . The advantage of this pulse sequence is that it is sensitive to proteoglycans (PG), a major macromolecule degraded in OA. The study objective is to determine if T1ρ can acutely assess PG content in femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) which may allow physicians to differentiate between normal and early-OA cartilage states in FAI patients.

Read the detailed description

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is one of the best ways to image articular cartilage. One of the techniques which has shown great promise is the imaging technique called T1ρ (T1-rho). T1ρ is a modified pulse sequence from the standard T1 sequence used in the clinical MRI. Because the initial phases of arthritis occur at the molecular level, the main advantage of the T1ρ pulse sequence is that it is sensitive to proteoglycan. Proteoglycan is a molecule that is important to cartilage structure, and is lost as osteoarthritis develops. If we can show that this non-invasive tool can accurately assess cartilage damage and levels of proteoglycan, the clinical applications are numerous. The results can potentially help determine optimal surgical techniques and timing of surgical intervention to halt or slow the progression of arthritis, and will assist in the study of the effects of FAI and the success of the surgery performed to correct FAI.

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Conditions studied

  • Femoroacetabular Impingement
  • Cartilage, Articular
  • Hip Joint
  • MRI
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In context

Femoracetabular Impingement

108 studies on the registry are indexed under Femoracetabular Impingement; 35 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 26 is below the median of 75 across 63 interventional studies indexed under Femoracetabular Impingement.

Browse Femoracetabular Impingement studies →

Lead sponsor

Ottawa Hospital Research Institute is the lead sponsor of 538 studies on the registry; 100 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 40 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

  • Group 1: Patient has been diagnosed by the surgeon as having femoro-acetabular impingement (FAI) of the hip)
  • Group 1: Must meet all the following criteria: A) History and Physical Exam 1) Intermittent pain worse with activity 2) Positive impingement test (pain with flexion, adduction, and internal rotation of affected hip) B) X-ray 1) No signs of OA on plain radiological films (i.e. no osteophytes, no loss of joint space) 2) Non-spherical femoral head
  • Group 2: Patient has not been diagnosed by the surgeon as having any hip problems.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Previous Hip Surgeries (Pelvic Osteotomies)
  • Previous Hip Trauma
  • History of Pediatric Hip Pathology: Slipped Capital Femoral Epiphysis or Hip Dysplasia
  • Over the age of 40 years
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Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Other
Allocation
Non-randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
26 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Other
    Patient Group

    The patient group has been diagnosed by the surgeon as having femoro-acetabular impingement (FAI) of the hip and will undergo a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test, more specifically, T1-rho to examine articular cartilage.

    Diagnostic Test: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

  • Other
    Control healthy volunteers

    The control group has not been diagnosed with any hip problems, but will undergo a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test, more specifically, T1-rho to examine articular cartilage.

    Diagnostic Test: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

Interventions

  • Diagnostic testMagnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

    T1 rho MRI is a modified pulse sequence from the standard T1 sequence used in the clinical MRI.

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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Assess articular cartilage using T1rho MRI

    To provide a detailed quantitative assessment of the sensitivity of T1rho in the characterization of proteoglycan depletion in patients with or without femoroacetabular impingement.

    Time frame: Pre-op (within 6 weeks prior to surgery)

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Study locations

1 site
  • The Ottawa Hospital
    Ottawa, Ontario K1H 8L6, Canada
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References and documents

Publications

  • Rakhra KS, Lattanzio PJ, Cardenas-Blanco A, Cameron IG, Beaule PE. Can T1-rho MRI detect acetabular cartilage degeneration in femoroacetabular impingement?: a pilot study. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 2012 Sep;94(9):1187-92. doi: 10.1302/0301-620X.94B9.29981. PubMed 22933489 ↗
  • Anwander H, Rakhra KS, Melkus G, Beaule PE. T1rho Hip Cartilage Mapping in Assessing Patients With Cam Morphology: How Can We Optimize the Regions of Interest? Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2017 Apr;475(4):1066-1075. doi: 10.1007/s11999-016-5011-0. PubMed 27506970 ↗
  • McGuffin WS, Melkus G, Rakhra KS, Beaule PE. Is the contralateral hip at risk in patients with unilateral symptomatic cam femoroacetabular impingement? A quantitative T1rho MRI study. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2015 Aug;23(8):1337-42. doi: 10.1016/j.joca.2015.03.018. Epub 2015 Mar 25. PubMed 25819578 ↗
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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Mar 27, 2018, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT01578694
Lead sponsor
Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Apr 17, 2012
Start date
Jul 2007
Primary completion
Dec 2012
Completion
Dec 2012
Last update
Mar 27, 2018

Study contacts

Paul E Beaule, MD, FRCSC
principal investigator · University of Ottawa / The Ottawa Hospital

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is completed, as verified in Mar 2018. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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