Hip structural analysis: a comparison of DXA with CT in postmenopausal Japanese women

Geometry of the proximal femur is one determinant of fracture risk, and can be analyzed by a simple method using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). The aim of the present study was to investigate the accuracy of hip structural analysis (HSA) using clinical data in postmenopausal Japanese women. A total of 184 postmenopausal women aged 51–88 years (mean, 70.5 ± 8.7 years) who underwent artificial joint replacement surgery for osteoarthrosis of the hip or knee joint were included. Computed tomography (CT) data from preoperative assessment were utilized for analysis of proximal femoral geometry (CT-HSA) using QCTPro Software (Mindways Software Inc., Austin, TX) and compared with HSA results based on DXA (DXA-HSA). The results of femoral geometry were further compared with a CT-based finite-element method (CT/FEM). There was moderate to high correlation between DXA-HSA and CT-HSA (r=0.60-0.90, p