TITLE:
Microcomputed Tomography Applications in Bone and Mineral Research
AUTHORS:
Zachary Ryan Bart, Joseph Michael Wallace
KEYWORDS:
Bone CT; Mineralization; Vascularization; BMD; Modeling
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Computed Tomography,
Vol.2 No.3,
September
26,
2013
ABSTRACT: Microcomputed tomography (μCT) has evolved as a development of
simple X-ray imaging into an indispensable technique used in both laboratory
research and clinical diagnostics. Commercially available systems are capable
of creating images at sub-micrometer resolutions to map out the complex web of
trabecular bone in small animals, and offer an accurate measurement of bone
mineral density for patients at risk of osteoporotic fractures. This review
describes the development of μCT, its ability to analyze bone, and how it can
be used alongside other clinical and laboratory techniques. μCT offers a non-destructive
alternative for imaging mineralized tissues with no required preparation and
can also be utilized with living specimen to track skeletal development.