mFFE MRI Versus CT for Cortical Bone Evaluation in Knee Osteoarthritis

September 14, 2026 updated by: Fatima Mahmoud Hammad Eltony, Assiut University

Beyond Conventional MRI: Multi-Echo Fast Field Echo (mFFE) MRI for Cortical Bone Evaluation in Knee Osteoarthritis Compared With CT

This cross-sectional study aims to evaluate the accuracy of multi-echo fast field echo (mFFE) MRI in depicting cortical bone changes in knee osteoarthritis compared with CT.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Detailed Description

Knee osteoarthritis involves microstructural alterations in subchondral and cortical bone. Conventional MRI has limitations in visualizing cortical bone due to short T2 relaxation times. Multi-echo fast field echo (mFFE) sequences can produce CT-like images of cortical bone without ionizing radiation.

This observational study will include patients aged 40 years or older with clinically suspected or confirmed knee osteoarthritis. All participants will undergo both mFFE MRI and CT of the knee. The accuracy of mFFE MRI in detecting cortical bone degenerative changes will be compared with CT as the reference standard.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

80

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients aged 40 years or older with clinically suspected or confirmed knee osteoarthritis attending the Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology Department at Assiut University Hospital.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • - Age 40 years or older
  • Clinically suspected or confirmed knee osteoarthritis
  • Able and willing to provide informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • - Implanted electronic devices (pacemakers, ICDs, neurostimulators, cochlear implants)
  • Metallic foreign bodies in the eyes or orbits
  • Ferromagnetic cerebral aneurysm clips
  • Implantable infusion pumps
  • Pregnancy

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
Single cohort: Patients with knee osteoarthritis
Patients aged 40 years or older with knee osteoarthritis who will undergo both multi-echo fast field echo (mFFE) MRI and CT of the knee for comparison of cortical bone evaluation.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Diagnostic accuracy of mFFE MRI for cortical bone changes
Time Frame: Baseline
Overall diagnostic accuracy percentage of multi-echo fast field echo MRI in detecting cortical bone degenerative changes in knee osteoarthritis, using CT as the reference standard
Baseline

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Sensitivity of mFFE MRI for cortical bone changes
Time Frame: Baseline
Sensitivity percentage of multi-echo fast field echo MRI in detecting cortical bone degenerative changes in knee osteoarthritis, using CT as the reference standard
Baseline
Specificity of mFFE MRI for cortical bone changes
Time Frame: Baseline
Specificity percentage of multi-echo fast field echo MRI in detecting cortical bone degenerative changes in knee osteoarthritis, using CT as the reference standard
Baseline
Detection of subchondral sclerosis
Time Frame: Baseline
Number of cases in which mFFE MRI correctly identifies subchondral sclerosis compared with CT
Baseline
Detection of osteophytes
Time Frame: Baseline
Number of cases in which mFFE MRI correctly identifies osteophytes compared with CT
Baseline
Detection of joint space narrowing
Time Frame: Baseline
Number of cases in which mFFE MRI correctly identifies joint space narrowing compared with CT
Baseline
Image quality score
Time Frame: Baseline
Mean subjective image quality score of mFFE MRI for cortical bone visualization on a predefined scale from 1 to 5, with higher scores indicating better image quality
Baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Assiut University

Investigators

  • Study Chair: Ehab M Mohammed, prof, Diagnostic and interventional radiology Department, Assiut University Hospitals

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

September 15, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

September 20, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

February 20, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 14, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 14, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

September 18, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

September 18, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 14, 2026

Last Verified

September 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • mFFE-MRI-KneeOA-Assiut-2026

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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