Bone mineral density measurements in vertebral specimens and phantoms using dual-layer spectral computed tomography

Kai Mei, Benedikt J. Schwaiger, Felix K. Kopp, Sebastian Ehn, Alexandra S. Gersing, Jan S. Kirschke, Daniela Muenzel, Alexander A. Fingerle, Ernst J. Rummeny, Franz Pfeiffer, Thomas Baum, Peter B. Noël

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36 Scopus citations

Abstract

To assess whether phantomless calcium-hydroxyapatite (HA) specific bone mineral density (BMD) measurements with dual-layer spectral computed tomography are accurate in phantoms and vertebral specimens. Ex-vivo human vertebrae (n = 13) and a phantom containing different known HA concentrations were placed in a semi-anthropomorphic abdomen phantom with different extension rings simulating different degrees of obesity. Phantomless dual-layer spectral CT was performed at different tube current settings (500, 250, 125 and 50 mAs). HA-specific BMD was derived from spectral-based virtual monoenergetic images at 50 keV and 200 keV. Values were compared to the HA concentrations of the phantoms and conventional qCT measurements using a reference phantom, respectively. Above 125 mAs, errors for phantom measurements ranged between -1.3% to 4.8%, based on spectral information. In vertebral specimens, high correlations were found between BMD values assessed with spectral CT and conventional qCT (r ranging between 0.96 and 0.99; p < 0.001 for all) with different extension rings, and a high agreement was found in Bland Altman plots. Different degrees of obesity did not have a significant influence on measurements (P > 0.05 for all). These results suggest a high validity of HA-specific BMD measurements based on dual-layer spectral CT examinations in setups simulating different degrees of obesity without the need for a reference phantom, thus demonstrating their feasibility in clinical routine.

Original languageEnglish
Article number17519
JournalScientific Reports
Volume7
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Dec 2017

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