QUANTITATIVE CT ASSESSMENT OF PROXIMAL FE MORAL BONE-DENSITY - AN EXPERIMENTAL-STUDY CONCERNING ITS CORRELATION TO BREAKING LOAD FOR FEMORAL-NECK FRACTURES

Purpose: In an experimental study, the correlation between the trabecu lar bone density of the different regions of the proximal femur and th e fracture load in the setting of femoral neck fractures was examined. Methods: The bone mineral density of 41 random proximal human femora was estimated by single-energy quantitative CT (SE-OCT). The trabecula r bone density was measured at the greatest possible extracortical vol ume at midcapital, midneck and intertrochanteric level and in the 1 cm (3) volumes of the centres of these regions in a standardised 10 mm th ick slice in the middle of the femoral neck axis (in mg/ml Ca-hydroxyl apatite). The proximal femora were then isolated and mounted on a com pression/bending device under two-legged stand conditions and loaded u p to the point when a femoral neck fracture occurred. Results: Statist ical analysis revealed a linear correlation between the trabecular bon e density and the fracture load for the greater regions, with the high est value in the maximal area of the head (coefficient factor r=0.76). Conclusion: According to our data, the measurement of the trabecular bone by SE-OCT at the femoral head is a more confident adjunct than th e neck or trochanteric area to predict a femoral neck fracture.