The measurement of sequential changes in cortical bone geometry.

A method is described whereby the sequential changes occurring in the thickness of the cortices of the metacarpal shafts may be observed. The method utilizes pairs of hand radiographs from which the total bone width and medullary width of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th metacarpals are determined in duplicate using needle-tipped Vernier calipers. The errors are discussed and the precision of the method is shown to compare very favourably with the precision of the most recent densitometric techniques. The rate of loss of bone in post-menopausal women is evaluated, and is shown to be dependent upon the number of years elapsed since the menopause.