Abstract

Aim: The aim was to compare and contrast the lumbal area DEXA measurements made in lateral and front-back positions in the clinically diagnosed female patients with osteoporosis.
Material and methods: From the female patients that were referred to our clinic due to low energy fractures that occurred in areas other than the vertabrae, whom were thought to have osteoporotic fractures, were postmenaposal with no known history of diseases, and medication that can lead to osteoporosis and fracture, with no known previous diagnosis of osteoporosis, 39 patients have been included in the study. Anteroposterior and lateral standart lumbar DEXA measurements were performed on all patients
Results: The results of our study revealed that the the laterally performed lumbar Dual Energy X-ray Absorbsiometer (DEXA) measurements have diagnostic advantage in osteoporosis over anteroposteriorly performed measurements . The antiosteoporotic treatment would have beeen prescribed to 82% of the patients if the anteroposteriorly performed lumbar region Dual Energy X-ray Absorbsiometer (DEXA) measurements were taken into account, while when laterally performed measurements were taken into account the percentage was 97.5%.
Conclusion: If lateral lumbar area Dual Energy X-ray Absorbsiometer (DEXA) measurements are used in diagnosing osteoporosis more patients would receive the required treatment and the risk of the osteoporotic low energy fractures could be lowered.

Key words: Bone Mineral Density; Dual X-Ray Absorptiometry; Osteoporosis; Lateral Vertebral DEXA