Image-based Analysis of in vivo Knee Dynamics

The aim of this project is the development of MRI-based methods and technologies for the non-invasive in-vivo assessment of mechanical loads in soft tissue structures of the knee joint. Such an in-vivo assessment of soft tissue kinematics in 3D together with their incident loads would pave the way for an understanding of the dynamics of elastic deformations of tendons, ligaments, and menisci in healthy subjects as well as their changes due to pathologies (e.g. after ruptures of the anterior cruciate ligament in young vs. elderly patients). Given the short acquisition times available in the dynamic imaging setup only partial information (low resolution, 2D slices instead of 3D volume) can be acquired. Therefore, specialized reconstruction methods have to be developed to extract the motion of soft tissues from the incomplete data, e.g. by correlating information from high-resolution static images to the partial data. The obtained time-dependent configurations of the structures can then be interpreted as shape trajectories allowing morphometric analysis employing manifold-valued statistical tools.