Comparison of radiographic bone density measurements of the radius in dogs using 6063 and 6351 aluminum scales

Abstract

The measurement of bone mineral densitometry (BMD) is an analytical method used to aid in the identification of bone tissue alterations, such as osteoporosis. Thus, the present study aims to evaluate the correlation index between radiographic bone densitometry using aluminum step wedges 6063 and 6351 ABNT. In this manner, the quantification of bone mineral content in this study was performed with five simple digital radiographs of five dry bones (radii) from healthy adult male and female dogs, along with the aluminum reference scales. These radiographs were digitized and analyzed using ImageJ software version 1.54f, which compares the grayscale shades of the ultra-distal epiphysis of the radius with the pixel intensity of the step wedges, with values expressed in millimeters of aluminum (mmAl). The study demonstrated that as the thickness of the anatomical piece increased, the density and absorption of radiation also increased. A perfect correlation (r = 0.9999 with p < 0.01) was observed between the values of the two step wedges, making it feasible to use aluminum alloys 6351 and 6063 as densitometric references for the determination of radiographic bone mineral density (rBMD).

Key-words:
dogs; bone mineral density; radiology