Effects of temperature, concentration and articular surface removal on transient solute diffusion in articular cartilage.

The diffusion of glucose, inulin and dextran into adult bovine articular cartilage was studied as a function of temperature, solute concentration and articular surface integrity. One-dimensional, transient solute diffusion experiments were performed for 5, 15 and 60 min. The diffusion and interface partition coefficients increased with increasing temperature, but exhibited no concentration dependency when the solute concentration was increased 100-fold. Relative to intact tissue, removal of the uppermost articular surface resulted in decreased solute concentrations within the tissue for all solutes and time periods tested.