OBJECTIVE: It remains unclear whether @entity893 of the knee is a cause of knee @entity571 or a marker of disease progression. We investigated whether baseline @entity893 of the knee predicts subsequent change in knee cartilage volume and @entity154 in subjects with and without @entity626 ( @entity571 ). METHODS: A convenience sample of 315 male and female subjects (mean age 45 yrs, range 26-61) was followed up for a mean period of 2.4 years. Anatomic knee alignment was assessed on a standing anterior-posterior semiflexed view of the right knee and defined as the angle subtended by a line drawn through the midshaft of the femur with respect to one drawn through the midshaft of the tibia. T1-weighted fat saturation magnetic resonance imaging scans were performed on the same knee at baseline and followup for cartilage volume and @entity154 . RESULTS: Knee alignment was normally distributed in this sample with a mean of 178.2 degrees (SD 1.9 degrees). Fifty-five percent of subjects were < 178.5 degrees, while 14% were > 180 degrees. After adjustment for age, sex, body mass index, previous @entity3331 , and @entity571 family history, neither category of alignment at baseline was associated with subsequent loss of lateral and medial tibial cartilage volume. Similarly, there was no association between @entity893 and progression of @entity154 . The results remained the same when stratified by radiographic @entity571 status. CONCLUSION: Our adequately powered study shows that baseline knee alignment is not associated with subsequent loss of cartilage volume or progression of @entity154 over 2 years. Further studies with a longterm followup are needed, but these results suggest @entity893 is primarily a marker of disease progression.

A longitudinal study of the association between knee alignment and change in cartilage volume and XXXX in a largely non-osteoarthritic population.

@entity154 :: ('MESH:D000013', 'Disease') :: ['chondral defects'] @entity626 :: ('MESH:D020370', 'Disease') :: ['radiographic knee osteoarthritis'] @entity571 :: ('MESH:D010003', 'Disease') :: ['OA'] @entity3331 :: ('MESH:D007718', 'Disease') :: ['knee injury'] @entity893 :: ('MESH:D017760', 'Disease') :: ['malalignment']
@entity154 :: (MESH:D000013,Disease) :: ['chondral defects']
