Indentation testing of human articular cartilage: Effects of probe tip geometry and indentation depth on intra-tissue strain

Experimental determination of intra-tissue deformation during clinically applicable rapid indentation testing would be useful for understanding indentation biomechanics and for designing safe indentation probes and protocols. The objectives of this study were to perform two-dimensional (2-D) indentation tests, using indenters and protocols that are analogous to those in clinically oriented probes, of normal adult-human articular cartilage in order to determine: (1) intra-tissue strain maps and regions of high strain magnitude, and (2) the effects on strain of indenter geometry (rectangular prismatic and cylindrical) and indentation depth (40–190 μm). Epifluorescence microscopy of samples undergoing indentation and subsequent video image correlation analysis allowed determination of strain maps. Regions of peak strain were near the “edges” of indenter contact with the cartilage surface, and the strain magnitude in these regions ranged from 0.05 to 0.30 in compression and shear, a range with known biological consequences. With increasing indentation displacement, strain magnitudes generally increased in all regions of the tissue. Compared to indentation using a rectangular prismatic tip, indentation with a cylindrical tip resulted in slightly higher peak strain magnitudes while influencing a smaller region of cartilage. These results may be used to refine clinical indenters and indentation protocols.