Interobserver variability in the determination of bone mineral density in Hounsfield units from differently configured fields of measurement in the cancellous bone of vertebral bodies from elderly body donors

Background: Due to the absence of suitable diagnostic procedures, osteoporosis (OP) is frequently detected late or not at all. Many elderly persons undergo computed tomographies (CT). The routine determination of Hounsfield units (HU) in bone as a part of these examinations could close a gap here. Methods: Spines were extracted from 22 body donors, fixed in a PVC water phantom, and subjected to a highresolution CT investigation. Cancellous bone was examined and its bone mineral density measured in HU from cervical vertebra 3 to lumbar vertebra 5 (484 vertebral bodies). On sagittal sections, a circular and a rectangular region of interest (ROI) were defined in mid-vertebral cancellous bone, positioned manually, and the measurements were performed by three experienced radiologists. Bone mineral density (BMD), measured in mg/ cm(3), was used to determine the presence of OP.Results: All of the spines were osteoporotic. In the presence of a BMD below 60 mg/cm3 and HU values below 63.36 in lumbar vertebrae, there were significantly more vertebral body fractures in the thoracic and thoracolumbar spine. No difference was observed between the manually positioned circular and rectangular regions of interest (ROI) on the sagittal CT section (p > 0.05). Similar HU counts were obtained by the individual examiners (p > 0.05). The following formula was used to determine QCT values on a non-contrasted CT of the spine: QCT = 0.6 x HU + 13.7.Conclusions: Measurement of the density of cancellous bone in HU can be used to determine BMD for estimating demineralization. Quantitative BMD values in mg/cm3, which can be calculated from the HU data, concur well with QCT values.