Computer simulation can aid sore joints - Technology - Brief Article

Many of us will face pain and swelling caused by osteoarthritis, the natural wear and tear on our joints as we age. Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, N.Y., are developing computer models of joints that could lead to a diagnostic tool for osteoarthritis and might make many hip replacements obsolete.

Robert Spilker, chair of biomedical engineering, heads the effort to model accurately cartilage within joints, such as the knee, hip, shoulder, and spine. He and his colleagues simulate a functional environment, such as the knee, through computer modeling that can re-create the mechanical environment, or stress, that may affect a tissue and its individual cells.

"There is more to characterizing tissue than just looking at biological structure and function," says Spilker. "The properties in bones and cartilage vary within themselves and also from person to person. Growing tissue such as cartilage is a major development, but making it function as a load-carrying material requires significant new engineering research."

Currently, osteoarthritis can be detected only after cartilage thinning has occurred. By that time, the functional properties of the tissue have already deteriorated significantly, making effective treatment such as drug delivery more difficult.

Patient-specific cartilage modeling could help physicians predict cartilage thinning, and more-accurate joint models mean more-accurate, less-invasive surgeries. Doctors could choose cartilage replacement surgery over hip replacement surgery when bone fracture is not involved, although Spilker indicates the option might be 10 years down the road.

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