Sonographic assessment of femoral cartilage thickness in healthy adults

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to obtain normative data of the distal femoral cartilage thickness in healthy adults by ultrasound. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 72 healthy adults. The demographic characteristics of the participants were recorded, and the thickness of the femoral articular cartilage was measured using a 5- to 18-MHz linear probe. RESULTS: Significant statistical difference towards the male side at left medial condyle (P = 0.001) and left lateral condyle (P = 0.009). Weakly positive statistical difference was noted towards the male side at right medial condyle (P = 0.06) and right lateral condyle (P = 0.07). The femoral cartilage thickness in the study participants did not correlate with weight, body mass index, and age (P >0.05). Positive statistical correlation with height noted in right medial condyle, right lateral condyle, right intercondylar area, and left medial condyle. CONCLUSION: This study increases the pool of normative data of femoral cartilage thickness measurements. Additionally, the findings of this study emphasize the fact that women have thinner cartilage than men in four of the studied parameters.