The relationship between paediatric calcaneal quantitative ultrasound measurements and dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and DXA with laser (DXL) as well as body composition

Abstract

Background: Quantitative ultrasound (QUS) is a quick, non-invasive and inexpensive method to measure bone strength. Moreover, the device is portable, which makes it easy to be used in the field. In contrast to other bone measuring techniques, QUS does not use any ionised radiation. However, the validity of QUS in the measurement of bone health and the relationship between QUS output and body composition have not been assessed in very young children. Objective: To investigate the relationship between paediatric calcaneal QUS and both dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and calcaneal DXA with laser (DXL) and body composition parameters. Subjects: A total of 37 Belgian children (10 boys and 27 girls; 4 to 8 years old) underwent a calcaneal QUS as well as a DXA scan. A total of 24 Swedish children (15 boys and 9 girls; 3 to 5 years old) underwent a calcaneal QUS as well as a heel DXL scan. The height and weight of all children were measured. Results: The QUS stiffness index (SI) was significantly negatively correlated with bone mineral density (BMD) of the total body (r ¼ À0.370, P ¼ 0.02). No significant correlations were found between the SI and DXL results. In the total sample, the SI showed a significant positive correlation with body mass index (BMI) (r ¼ 0.298, P ¼ 0.02), even after correction for age, gender and centre. In the Belgian sample, the SI was also significantly positively correlated with total body fat mass content (r ¼ 0.416, P ¼ 0.01) and body fat percentage (r ¼ 0.566, Po0.01) obtained by whole-body DXA. Conclusion: The SI measured by QUS does not correlate significantly with BMD values measured by DXA or DXL in 3-to 8-year-old children. However, there is a significant positive correlation between SI and BMI and body fat %.

The IDEFICS cohort: design, characteristics and participation in the baseline survey

“…34 Ultrasonometry was compared with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry to assess bone mineral density in a sample of children from Sweden and Belgium. 35 The data set was made available for analysis on a protected central data server for remote online analyses. Access to data is restricted to authorised members of the study consortium.…”

Agreement Between Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry and Quantitative Ultrasound to Evaluate Bone Health in Adolescents: The PRO-BONE Study

“…Similarly, BUA was significantly related to total body BMD in children (7-17 y old) (18). In contrast, a negative and significant correlation between SI and total body BMD was found in 4-to 8-year-old children, whereas no correlation was found with lumbar spine (LS) and leg BMD in this population (28). The age of the children may have influenced the results of these previous studies because it is known that woven bone tissue is often found in very young children and that woven bone is less stiff than other types of bone tissue (28).…”

Interaction Between Clinical and Laboratorys Indicators and Genetic Polymorphysms of the Calcaneal Bone Mineral Density in Children Starting Puberty. Is this a Time for Intervention?

“…Adult height is considered to be a highly heritable and polygenetic trait. Bone mineral density is also highly heritable trait, with as much as 60-80% of variance attributable to genetic factors [21][22][23]. In recent years many studies investigated genetic background of BMD and osteoporosis revealing different genetic markers across the chromosomes [24-27].…”

“…There are few approaches in measurement of bone mineral density (BMD), but the easiest and ethically more acceptable approach in children is the use of quantitative ultrasound (QUS), a quick, noninvasive and inexpensive method to measure bone strength [21][22][23].…”