Relation between speed of sound measured by using ultrasound and magnetic resonance images and elasticity in tissue-engineered cartilage

It is important to evaluate the elasticity of tissue-engineered cartilage, for evaluating its structural strength. However, in vivo evaluation of tissue-engineered cartilage elasticity has not been established. On the other hand, since the speed of sound (SOS) is available for elasticity evaluation, we have proposed in vivo measurement method of SOS using ultrasound and MR images. This method determines the SOS based on the thickness measurement using the MR image and the time-of-flight (TOF) measurement using the ultrasound. In this study, this method was applied to the SOS measurement in tissue-engineered cartilage, and then relation between in vivo SOS and elasticity was investigated. As the result, in vivo SOS had a high correlation with Young´s modulus. This result reveals that in vivo evaluation of tissue-engineered cartilage elasticity is available through in vivo SOS measurement.