Repeated vertebral augmentation for new vertebral compression fractures of postvertebral augmentation patients: a nationwide cohort study – how useful is the current clinical gold standard for fracture risk?

Abstract

Hannah CP Wilson,1 Paul D Abel,2 S Imran A Shah2 1Department of Post-graduate Students, Imperial College London, Charing Cross Hospital, 2Department of surgery and cancer, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital, London, UKFurther to the recent publication on the “Repeated vertebral augmentation for new vertebral compression fractures of postvertebral augmentation patients: a nationwide cohort study”,1 current data highlight the limitations of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans. In this context, at best, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans (which measure bone mineral density) can account for no greater than 50% of overall bone strength (defined as the ability to resist fracture). This is because the resulting images are two-dimensional and therefore unable to capture skeletal micro-architecture, which also contributes to bone strength.2 View original article by Liang et al 

Keywords

• Bone mineral density
• fracture risk
• CT-scan