Comparative effectiveness of four techniques for identifying vertebral fragility fractures among elderly patients

Objective: The incidence of vertebral fragile fractures peaked among the elderly population, and identifying individuals at high risk of vertebral fractures and promptly instituting preventions are of critical importance. This study aims to determine the efficacy and values of Hounsfield unit (HU) values, vertebral bone quality (VBQ) scores, bone mineral density (BMD) measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and quantitative computed tomography (QCT) to discriminate between patients with and without vertebral fractures.

Methods: A thorough search was conducted across PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, CNKI, and Wan Fang Database to identify potential studies that met the eligibility criteria. Studies that evaluated the utility of HU values, VBQ scores, QCT-measured BMD, and DXA-measured BMD in discriminating vertebral fractures were qualified.

Results: The combined results showed that there were significant differences in HU values, VBQ scores, QCT-measured BMD, and DXA-measured BMD between the fracture and non-fracture groups. Moreover, the pooled sensitivity, specificity, and AUC of HU values were 0.82, 0.67, and 0.76, respectively; the pooled sensitivity, specificity, and AUC of VBQ scores were 0.70, 0.75, and 0.78; the pooled sensitivity, specificity, and AUC of QCT-measured BMD were 0.85, 0.76 and 0.88.

Conclusion: All four methods, namely HU values, VBQ scores, QCT-measured BMD, and DXA-measured BMD can effectively distinguish between patients with and without vertebral fragile fractures. Among these, QCT-measured BMD exhibited a relatively high efficacy in discriminating vertebral fractures. VBQ scores and HU values demonstrated comparable efficacy for discriminating vertebral fractures among elderly patients.

Key points: Question Can four different imaging modalities effectively discriminate vertebral fragility fracture status among elderly patients? Findings These methods can effectively distinguish vertebral fractures status among elderly patients, and quantitative computed tomography (QCT)-measured bone mineral density (BMD) exhibited a relatively high efficacy. Clinical relevance The clinical applications of Hounsfield unit values, vertebral bone quality scores, and BMD measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and QCT show promising outcomes in identifying individuals at high risk of vertebral fractures.