ArticleJournal of experimental orthopaedics2026
Age-related differences in MRI signal intensity of the quadriceps and patellar tendons: Implications for ACL graft selection.
Article in Journal of experimental orthopaedics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Age-related differences in MRI signal intensity of the quadriceps and patellar tendons: Implications for ACL graft selection.Journal of experimental orthopaedics · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Purpose: To compare the thickness and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) signal intensity at the patellar attachment of the quadriceps tendon (QT) and patellar tendon (PT) across age groups in order to evaluate age-related degenerative changes relevant to graft selection for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. It was hypothesised that older groups would show increased signal intensity. Methods: Patients aged 14-65 years who underwent knee MRI were retrospectively reviewed. Participants were categorised into the senior (50-65 years), middle (30-49 years), young (20-29 years) and teen (14-19 years) groups. After propensity score matching for sex, height and weight, 64 participants were included in each age group. T2* sagittal MR images of the ACL graft harvest area were used to measure the tendon thickness and signal intensity. Results: QT was significantly thicker and had lower signal intensity than PT across all age groups. Thickness did not significantly differ between QT and PT across age groups. QT signal intensity was significantly higher in seniors than in young adults, whereas PT signal intensity was significantly higher in both middle-aged and senior groups than in the young group. Conclusions: The QT was thicker than the PT and exhibited a lower signal intensity across all age groups. Compared to the 20-29-year age group, signal intensity was higher in the 50-65-year age group for the QT and in the 30-65-year age group for the PT. These MRI-based findings suggest that the QT may offer advantages as a graft source, particularly in patients aged >30 years. Level of Evidence: Level III, cross-sectional study.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.