Quantitative computed tomography assessment of spinal trabecular bone. I. Age-related regression in normal men and women.

Computed tomography, utilized in conjunction with a calibrated phantom containing a set of reference densities (K2HPO4 and water), is capable of determining the mineral content of the trabecular bone of the spine with an accuracy of about 6% of the ash weight of the vertebrae scanned (specimen studies). Other modalities measure a composite of cortical and trabecular bone. Computed tomography is capable of exclusively measuring the mineral content of the trabecular bone of the spine, where the earliest and most pronounced changes of spinal osteoporosis occur. Quantitative computed tomography measurements are useful for a precise and objective assessment of the spinal mineral content and its changes with age, disease, and drugs.