Cartilage in the ankle and feet of of humans can regenerate even while a person is running, according to a new study which tracked runners for 4,500 kilometres through Europe over a span of 64 days.
“The fact that ultra-distance running places stress on the body has been well documented,” said Uwe Schutz, from the University Hospital of Ulm in Germany.
“Our research provides detailed information on how the various organ systems change and adapt in response to that stress,” said Schutz.
The Trans Europe Foot Race (TEFR) took place from April 19 to June 21, 2009.
It entailed running 4,487 km starting in southern Italy and ending in the North Cape in Norway without any day of rest. Forty-four of the runners (66 per cent) participated in the study.
A 1.5 Tesla MRI scanner mounted on a mobile unit was used to scan each participant every three to four days, resulting in 15 to 17 MRI exams over the course of the race. The runners were also randomly assigned to additional examinations, and protocols were created for daily urine, blood tests.
The results showed that with exception to the patellar joint, nearly all cartilage segments of knee, ankle and hind-foot joints showed a significant degradation within the first 1,500 to 2,500 km of the race.