Diagnostic Imaging - Jerudong Park Medical Centre

PERIPHERALQCTMETHOD TOEVALUATEBONE MINERALDENSITY INOSTEOPOROSISWhat is Osteoporosis?Osteoporosis, characterised by thin, weak bones,can be a silent disease. It often progresses withoutsymptoms. In fact, what may seem like simple backpain could actually be spinal fractures you do not evenknow about.By about age 20, the average woman will haveacquired most of her skeletal mass. Bone mass reachesits peak by the age of 30-35. Afterwards, bone massbegins to decline at a steady rate. After menopause,the rate of bone loss increases significantly.As you lose bone mass, your bones becomethinner and more fragile. Women may lose up to 1/3of the bone mass in their spines in the first 6 yearsafter menopause, making them more susceptible tofractures. When your doctor looks at your bone health,he/she will compare the thickness of your bones tothat of a normal young adult. That comparison ismeasured in units called Standard Deviation (SD)- a mathematical term that describes the differencebetween each individual measurement and the mean(average).When a considerable amount of bone is lost, youreach a point when you have significantly less bonethan normal, a condition known as osteopenia.At this point, you have 1 to 2.5 SD less bone than anormal young adult. With further bone loss, thenormal structure of the bone is disrupted as well. Thisis the onset of osteoporosis, where your bone masswould be more than 2.5 SD below that of a normalyoung adult. Osteoporosis is a disease characterisedby low bone mass and structural deterioration ofbone tissue, leading to bone fragility and an increasedsusceptibility to fractures.Radiology Peripheral QCT • 25