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Relationships among magnetic resonance imaging, histological findings, and IGF-I in steroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head in rabbits

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Abstract

Objective

To study the relationships among magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), histological findings, and insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) in steroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head in rabbits.

Methods

Thirty rabbits were randomly divided into experimental Group A (n=15) and control Group B (n=15). The 7.5 mg/kg (2 ml) of dexamethasone (DEX) and physiological saline (2 ml) were injected into the right gluteus medius muscle twice at one-week intervals in animals of Groups A and B, respectively. At 4, 8 and 16 weeks after obtaining an MRI, the rabbits were sacrificed and the femoral head from one side was removed for histological study of lacunae empty of osteocytes, subchondral vessels, and size of fat cells under microscopy, and the femoral head from the other side was removed for enzyme-linked immunoadsorbent assay (ELISA) for IGF-I.

Results

At 4, 8 and 16 weeks after treatment, no necrotic lesions were detected in Group B, while they were detected in Group A. Light microscopy revealed that the fat cells of the marrow cavity were enlarged, subchondral vessels were evidently decreased, and empty bone lacunae were clearly increased. The IGF-I levels in Group A were significantly higher than those in Group B. At 8 weeks after the DEX injection, the MRI of all 20 femora showed an inhomogeneous, low signal intensity area in the femoral head, and at 16 weeks, the findings of all 10 femora showed a specific “line-like sign”. The MRI findings of all femora in Group B were normal.

Conclusion

MRI is a highly sensitive means of diagnosing early experimental osteonecrosis of the femoral head. However, the abnormal marrow tissues appeared later than 4 weeks when the expression of IGF-I increased. This reparative factor has an early and important role in response to steroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head, and provides a theoretical foundation for understanding the pathology and designing new therapies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Neurobiology and Physiology, Institute of Neuroscience, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China

    Xing-can Chen, Jian Weng, Xue-qun Chen & Ji-zeng Du

  2. Department of Radiology, the 117 Hospital of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, Hangzhou, 310013, China

    Xing-can Chen, Miao-ping Zhu, Yong-qing Pan & Miao Liu

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  1. Xing-can Chen
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  2. Jian Weng
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  3. Xue-qun Chen
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  4. Ji-zeng Du
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  5. Miao-ping Zhu
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  7. Miao Liu
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Correspondence to Xing-can Chen.

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Project (No. 06MA169) supported by the Medical Science Foundation of Nanjing Military Region, China

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Chen, Xc., Weng, J., Chen, Xq. et al. Relationships among magnetic resonance imaging, histological findings, and IGF-I in steroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head in rabbits. J. Zhejiang Univ. Sci. B 9, 739–746 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1631/jzus.B0820127

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1631/jzus.B0820127

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