Bone structure as revealed by microtomography

Tor Hildebrand; Andres Laib; Dieter Ulrich; Adrian Kohlbrenner; Peter Ruegsegger

doi:10.1117/12.279362

24 October 1997 Bone structure as revealed by microtomography

Tor Hildebrand, Andres Laib, Dieter Ulrich, Adrian Kohlbrenner, Peter Ruegsegger

Proceedings Volume 3149, Developments in X-Ray Tomography; (1997) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.279362
Event: Optical Science, Engineering and Instrumentation '97, 1997, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

The appearance of cancellous bone architecture is different for various skeletal sites and various disease states. In the iliac crest it is more plate-like, whereas in the spine rods dominate. During aging and disease plates are perforated and connecting rods are dissolved. There is a continuous shift from one structural type to the other. So traditional histomorphometric procedures, which are based on a fixed model type, will lead to questionable results. 3D microtomography allows to assess model independent structural parameters so that trabecular thickness, for example, can be determined directly. Not only mean thicknesses are available but also thickness histograms which are helpful to identify pathological states. Other features such as trabecular separation, degree of anisotropy and structural type index can be extracted from the 3D images and allow to characterize cancellous bone and its changes due to aging, disease and treatment. To fully exploit the significance of bone structure on bone strength large scale finite element (FE) analyses are performed. Hence microtomography, performed with a sufficiently fine isotropic spatial resolution, reveals information on the structural features of cancellous bone which were not available so far and which will, hopefully, lead to a better understanding of the pathogenesis of bone diseases and subsequently to improved treatment regimes.

Citation Download Citation

Tor Hildebrand, Andres Laib, Dieter Ulrich, Adrian Kohlbrenner, and Peter Ruegsegger "Bone structure as revealed by microtomography", Proc. SPIE 3149, Developments in X-Ray Tomography, (24 October 1997); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.279362

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available