Abstract
On standard lateral roentgenograms of the lumbar spine, a decrease in bone density is said to be detectable only after a bone loss of about 40%. To evaluate this view, we compared findings on plain films with bone mineral content of L1 determined by quantitative computed tomography in 80 healthy subjects with a mean age of 60 years. The highest correlations with bone mineral content were found for the criteria 'vertebral density versus soft tissue' (r = 0.5, p < 0.0001), the 'amount of trabeculations' (r = 0.49, p < 0.0001), and for the 'overall' estimate of osteopenia in the vertebra (r = 0.55, p < 0.0001). Surprisingly, these three radiographic criteria proved to be most helpful in subjects with bone mineral content above 110 mg/cm3 (nonosteoporotic range). We conclude that lateral radiographs of the lumbar spine can provide a rough estimate of bone density in nonosteoporotic subjects which may be helpful in determining when further analysis with more precise methods is appropriate.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 528-531 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Journal of Rheumatology |
| Volume | 17 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| State | Published - 1990 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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Keywords
- bone density
- osteoporosis
- radiography
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology
- Rheumatology
Cite this
Plain radiographs can be useful in estimating lumbar bone density. / Michel, B. A.; Lane, Nancy E; Jones, H. H.; Fries, J. F.; Bloch, D. A.
In: Journal of Rheumatology, Vol. 17, No. 4, 1990, p. 528-531.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Plain radiographs can be useful in estimating lumbar bone density
AU - Michel, B. A.
AU - Lane, Nancy E
AU - Jones, H. H.
AU - Fries, J. F.
AU - Bloch, D. A.
PY - 1990
Y1 - 1990
N2 - On standard lateral roentgenograms of the lumbar spine, a decrease in bone density is said to be detectable only after a bone loss of about 40%. To evaluate this view, we compared findings on plain films with bone mineral content of L1 determined by quantitative computed tomography in 80 healthy subjects with a mean age of 60 years. The highest correlations with bone mineral content were found for the criteria 'vertebral density versus soft tissue' (r = 0.5, p < 0.0001), the 'amount of trabeculations' (r = 0.49, p < 0.0001), and for the 'overall' estimate of osteopenia in the vertebra (r = 0.55, p < 0.0001). Surprisingly, these three radiographic criteria proved to be most helpful in subjects with bone mineral content above 110 mg/cm3 (nonosteoporotic range). We conclude that lateral radiographs of the lumbar spine can provide a rough estimate of bone density in nonosteoporotic subjects which may be helpful in determining when further analysis with more precise methods is appropriate.
AB - On standard lateral roentgenograms of the lumbar spine, a decrease in bone density is said to be detectable only after a bone loss of about 40%. To evaluate this view, we compared findings on plain films with bone mineral content of L1 determined by quantitative computed tomography in 80 healthy subjects with a mean age of 60 years. The highest correlations with bone mineral content were found for the criteria 'vertebral density versus soft tissue' (r = 0.5, p < 0.0001), the 'amount of trabeculations' (r = 0.49, p < 0.0001), and for the 'overall' estimate of osteopenia in the vertebra (r = 0.55, p < 0.0001). Surprisingly, these three radiographic criteria proved to be most helpful in subjects with bone mineral content above 110 mg/cm3 (nonosteoporotic range). We conclude that lateral radiographs of the lumbar spine can provide a rough estimate of bone density in nonosteoporotic subjects which may be helpful in determining when further analysis with more precise methods is appropriate.
KW - bone density
KW - osteoporosis
KW - radiography
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0025271876&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Article
C2 - 2189996
AN - SCOPUS:0025271876
VL - 17
SP - 528
EP - 531
JO - Journal of Rheumatology
JF - Journal of Rheumatology
SN - 0315-162X
IS - 4
ER -