Knee Cartilage T2 Associates with Foot and Ankle Posture

Motivation: Flat-footedness and pronated ankle posture have been observed in patients with knee osteoarthritis. Goal(s): This works seeks to determine if compositional changes to cartilage assessed from T2 relaxation times are associated with foot and ankle posture. Approach: Foot center of pressure, ankle eversion and tibial rotation were compared to tibiofemoral cartilage T2 in 24 participants with healthy knees. Results: Lower medial femoral cartilage T2 correlated to more medial foot center of pressure and greater ankle eversion (R=-0.71, p<0.0005; R=-0.54, p=0.006; respectively). Higher lateral tibial T2 correlated to more internal tibial rotation (R=-0.52, p=0.009). Impact: Correlation of foot and ankle posture to cartilage composition at the knee suggest that gait or shoe interventions to appropriately alter weight distribution at the foot and ankle could be utilized to benefit to knee cartilage health.