Simple ultrasound could predict osteoporosis risk in women
Radiation-free ultrasound of the heel may be used to better select women who need further bone density testing, such as a dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) exam, according to a new multi-center study to be published in the July issue of Radiology.

“Osteoporosis is a major public health issue expected to increase in association with worldwide aging of the population," said the study's lead author Idris Guessous, MD, senior research fellow in the department of internal medicine at Lausanne University Hospital in Switzerland. "The incidence of osteoporosis will outpace economic resources, and the development of strategies to better identify women who need to be tested is crucial."

According to Guessous, patients with osteoporosis are not optimally treated because of a lack of general awareness. "A simple prediction rule might be a useful clinical tool for healthcare providers to optimize osteoporosis screening,” he noted.

In the three-year multicenter study, 6,174 women age 70 to 85, with no previous formal diagnosis of osteoporosis, were screened with heel-bone quantitative ultrasound (QUS) to assess bone density. QUS was used to calculate the stiffness index at the heel.

Researchers added in risk factors such as age, history of fractures or a recent fall to the results of the heel-bone ultrasound to develop a predictive rule to estimate the risk of fractures.

The results showed that 1,464 women (23.7 percent) were considered lower risk and 4,710 (76.3 percent) were considered higher risk. Study participants where mailed questionnaires every six months for up to 32 months to record any changes in medical conditions, including illness, changes in medications or any fracture. If a fracture had occurred, the patients were asked to specify the fracture's precise location and trauma level and to include a medical report from the physician in charge, according to the study.

In the group of higher risk women, 290 (6.1 percent) developed fractures whereas only 27 (1.8 percent) of the women in the lower risk group developed fractures. Among the 66 women who developed a hip fracture, 60 (90 percent) were in the higher risk group.

Guessous said that the results showed that heel QUS is “not only effective at identifying high-risk patients who should receive further testing, but also may be helpful in identifying patients for whom further testing can be avoided.”
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