qus of phalanx, dxa, bmd, osteoporosis

dxl of calcaneus is a portable method for bmd. this study determined a cut off point for dxl in osteoporosis diagnosis. in 510 healthy postmenopausal women, bmd of axial regions with dxa (dpx-md, ge,lunar corp, madison, wi) and heel with dxl (demeteck- sweden), measured. the agreement of two methods and cut off point for dxl in defining osteoporosis, obtained. dxa found osteoporosis in 34.3% and in dxl in 26.1% of cases. agreement (kappa) was 0.407 for spine and 0.347 for femur. t-score = -1.8 for spine and t-score = -2.2 for femur were the cut off points of dxl in diagnosis of osteoporosis (sensitivity=84% specificity=60%) and (sensitivity=84% and specificity=70%), respectively. area under curve for regions were 0.807 (p=0.000) and 0.859 (p=0.000), respectively. these results mean dxl can not be used as a replacement for dxa, but it may can be used as a screening method for osteoporosis.