Reliability, costs, and radiation dose of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in diagnosis of radiologic sarcopenia in surgically menopausal women

The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare reliability, costs, and radiation dose of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) to MRI and CT in measuring muscle mass for the diagnosis of sarcopenia. Thirty-four consecutive DXA scans performed in surgically menopausal women from November 2019 until March 2020 were analyzed by two observers. Observers analyzed muscle mass of the lower limbs in every scan twice. Reliability was assessed by calculating inter- and intra-observer variability. Reliability from CT and MRI as well as radiation dose from CT and DXA were collected from literature. Costs for each type of scan were calculated according to the guidelines for economic evaluation of the Dutch National Health Care Institute. The 34 participants had a median age of 58 years (IQR 53–65) and a median body mass index of 24.6 (IQR 21.7–29.7). Inter-observer variability had an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.997 (95