Bone density testing is often performed to help diagnose osteoporosis or to see if you're at increased risk of this disease. Osteoporosis thins our bones, causing them to become more fragile and likely to break.
Just as a cholesterol test can help assess your risk of coronary artery disease, a bone density test can indicate your risk of a fracture. If your bone density is found to be very low, you and your doctor can decide on appropriate treatment to prevent fractures. Bone density measurements can also help monitor the effects of treatment.
Bone density tests are not the same as bone scans. Bone scans require an injection beforehand and are usually used to detect fractures, cancer, infections and other abnormalities in the bone.
