ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses methods for noninvasively measuring skeletal integrity. The skeleton, a living structure composed of bone tissue in a state of constant turnover, adapts continually to the complex and time-dependent milieu of mechanical forces to which it is subjected. As the body ages, the ability of the skeleton to perform its primary function of weight bearing is diminished, due to a loss of bone tissue. This loss of bone occurs in both the cortical and cancellous portions of the skeleton, thinning cortices and trabeculae, increasing their respective porosities, and leading to overall increases in bone fragility and risk of minimal trauma fractures.
