Study design: The effects of age-related osteoarthritic disease and bone loss on cortical and trabecular bone density in the human spine were analyzed. Changes were quantified by a new method of computed quantitative radiography. Using this method, the relative losses of bone mineral from specific areas and the specific redistribution of bone within vertebrae as a function of age-related bone loss and osteoarthritic change were determined.
Objectives: To quantify the effects of age-related bone loss and osteoarthritic disease on cortical and trabecular density in the human spine by the use of a new method of computed quantitative radiography.
Summary of background data: To the authors' knowledge, osteoarthritic and age-related changes resulting in the relative loss of bone mineral from specific areas within vertebrae have never been quantitatively studied.
Methods: Seventy-four vertebrae were obtained from 23 normal, human subjects at autopsy. Vertebral bodies were measured by dual-energy x-ray absorption, and then sectioned for analysis by computerized quantitative radiography. Attention was focused on overall bone density, regional cancellous bone density, and cortical bone density (anterior cortex, superior, and inferior endplates) for both mid-sagittal and para-sagittal sections. One hundred forty sections were so analyzed.
Results: Quantitative radiography demonstrated previously undescribed, well defined patterns of cortical and trabecular architecture and bone density within vertebral bodies that were uniform among vertebrae, but strongly influenced by osteoarthritic change and bone loss. These changes were neither detected nor documented by dual-energy x-ray absorption.
Conclusions: Understanding the patterns of bone lose, and knowing how osteoarthritic change affects normal bone loss yields insight into the pathophysiology of the aging process and osteoarthritic disorders. Knowledge of the variations in density and microanatomy within vertebrae may improve techniques of internal fixation and designs of spinal implants, and may help to clarify the pathogenesis of clinical problems such as fractures.