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FTR - Turkiye Fiziksel Tip ve Rehabilitasyon Dergisi, vol.50, no.2, pp.27-32, 2004 (Scopus)
Quantitative ultrasonography (QUS) has recently been proposed by several authors as an alternative method in the diagnosis and monitoring of osteoporosis with its ability to assess both bone mass and microarchitecture. The purpose of this study was to investigate correlation of QUS and dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) measurements. Calcaneal QUS and DEXA measurements performed in a standard fashion in a total of 485 patients showed, by Pearson correlation coefficient calculations, a positive but low correlation (r=0.13 to 0.37, p<0.001) for DEXA and "broadband ultrasound attenuation" (BUA) amplitudes and T-scores. Correlation was also low (r=0.16 to 0.29, p<0.001) between DEXA and "speed of sound" (SOS) T-scores and not significant between DEXA and SOS amplitudes. Separate evaluation of men, premenopausal women, and postmenopausal women showed a significant correlation (r=0.25 to 0.36, p<0.001) only for the postmenopausal group. The results of our study suggest that QUS can give results comparable in reliability to those of DEXA particularly in the postmenopausal women. However, the overall low to moderate correlation between QUS and DEXA results emphasizes the need for further research for delineation of the definitive role of QUS in diagnosing osteoporosis and predicting fracture risk.