Note: This report originally appeared in the July 2008 edition of DOTmed Business News. A list of registered users that provide sales & service can be found at the end. Read about GE and Hologic's fan beam technologies at https://www.dotmed.com/news/story/6272

Here is a perfect intersection of drugs and technology.

In the old days, there was little that doctors could do to treat osteoporosis. Tums and Tylenol were the only weapons in the armamentarium. Everything changed in 1999 with the approval of the first drugs to build bone mineralization. Examples include Merck's Fosamax and GlaxoSmithKline's Boniva, among others. The treatment has finally caught up to the diagnostic capability of bone densitometers.
"These are connected for sure," said Gitte Andreasen, Director of Global Marketing, Lunar Division, GE Healthcare, Waukesha, WI. "When the first osteoporosis treatment received approval, we did see an increased interest in BMD [bone mineral density] testing, because the dilemma physicians had faced - 'I would love to test you but I have no therapy available' - now had a solution."

Bone mineral density is measured by various types of equipment at various sites on the body, including the spine, hip, femur, forearm, heel, and fingers. DEXA or (DXA) scanners come in two main types - older pencil beam and the new fan beam designs that have tremendous diagnostic capability. The smaller or peripheral body parts are assessed with ultrasound or more compact X-ray units.

"Each device and each measurement site has its place. For a quantitative bone density measurement I would say go get a measure of your spine and hip to check for fractures," said John Jenkins, Senior Director of Skeletal Health Division, Hologic, Inc., Bedford, MA. "The peripheral measures of the forearm or heel are for widespread screening - it's a risk indicator but not a diagnostic tool." The distinctions are important since they affect the cost of the equipment and the potential target market for it, which range from modest screening systems that might be utilized by private practitioners, up to cutting-edge technologies in hospitals.




"There are $10,000 systems [sold] around the world. These are less expensive, but also less advanced when it comes to clinical applications," noted Andreasen. "They do have a smaller footprint ... this is often an issue for primary care physicians."

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