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A proposed model of naturally occurring osteoarthritis in the domestic rabbit

Lab Animal volume 41, pages 20–25 (2012)Cite this article

Abstract

Osteoarthritis affects one in eight American adults over the age of 25 y and is a leading cause of chronic disability in the US. Translational research to investigate treatments for this naturally occurring joint disease requires an appropriate animal model. The authors conducted a retrospective study to assess the potential of naturally occurring osteoarthritis in the domestic rabbit as a model of the human disease. Analysis of radiographic images showed that the presence and severity of osteoarthritis were significantly influenced by both age and body weight. The most commonly affected joints were the knee and the hip. The findings reported here suggest that the rabbit is an excellent model of spontaneously arising osteoarthritis that may be useful in translational research pertaining to the human disease.

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Figure 1: Radiographic images of hip joints with increasing degrees of osteoarthritis severity.
Figure 2: Radiographic images of knee joints with increasing degrees of osteoarthritis severity.
Figure 3: The presence and severity of osteoarthritis detected in radiographic images of each of the examined joints in the total population.
Figure 4: The influence of age on the development and severity of osteoarthritis.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a grant from the US National Institutes of Health and an Innovative Research Grant from the Arthritis Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Davis, CA

    Boaz Arzi,  Daniel J. Huey,  Jerry Hu &  Kyriacos A. Athanasiou

  2. Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA

    Boaz Arzi &  Erik R. Wisner

  3. Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA

    Philip H. Kass

  4. Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California, Davis, CA

    Kyriacos A. Athanasiou

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Correspondence to Kyriacos A. Athanasiou.

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Arzi, B., Wisner, E., Huey, D. et al. A proposed model of naturally occurring osteoarthritis in the domestic rabbit. Lab Anim 41, 20–25 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban0112-20

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