DXA and clinical challenges of fracture risk assessment in primary care.

Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) can detect bone mineral density loss before it can be identified on usual skeletal radiography, making it possible to diagnose osteoporosis in postmenopausal women and older men before clinical fractures arise. However, when DXA is used outside these populations or if the clinical picture does not match the reported T-scores, mistakes can arise in interpreting results and determining the need for pharmaceutical therapy.