Addenbrooke’s update of DXA scanners enhances trabecular bone scoring

The DXA team at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, part of Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, has received two Horizon DXA scanners from Vertec Scientific. The Horizon systems build on the capabilities of the Discovery model they replaced and allow the team to select a fast, high definition mode to detect vertebral fractures, using less radiation than a plain x-ray as well as software to calculate the trabecular bone score (TBS) without further imaging or additional dose. TBS uses analysis of the lumbar spine to predict fracture risk independently of bone mineral density. Using the fastest scanning times, the Horizon can increase patient throughput. The team scans patients from age five to 85, for indications such as cystic fibrosis and Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Staff have noted that the Horizon is a slimline, faster version of the previous scanner which, although reliable, needed upgrading after 17 years. The new system comes with software to further manipulate images.

Picture: Vertec engineer Scott Wright with lead radiographer Karen Wynn and senior radiographer Kate Bessant.

Published on page 3 of the September 2023 issue of RAD Magazine.