Summary

Evaluation of early degeneration of cartilage in patients with isolate anterior cruciate ligament injury: analysis using urine CTX-II biomarker, comparison between two groups: control and patients with ACL injury

Abstract

Introduction

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture occurs predominantly young patients and about 30% of individuals with this lesion will present with osteoarthritis within 20 years following trauma, despite successful treatment. This can be explained by metabolic changes occurring concomitantly with the stress that results in the injury of this ligament.

Objective

To verify, through the analysis of biomarkers related to cartilage degeneration, that soon after the trauma leading to ACL rupture there are intra-articular metabolic changes in the knee that could lead to cartilage degeneration.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was carried out between two groups: patients with an ACL rupture and a control group (each group with 10 male subjects, range 18 – 35 years old, body mass index below 30 kg/m2). In both groups, urine concentrations of a biomarker related to degradation of type II collagen (CTX-II) was measured. For the group with ACL rupture, the temporal relationship between time post-injury and amount of the biomarker was also examined.

Results

Statistically significant differences were found in the concentrations of urinary CTX-II between the ACL group and the control group (p = 0.009). No statistical relationship was observed between time of injury and quantity of biomarker.

Conclusion

Patients with ACL injury had higher concentrations of urinary CTX-II biomarker than those with no ACL injury (p = 0.009). However, there was no correlation between the concentration of this biomarker and the elapsed time post-injury (p > 0.05).