Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 28, 2026

Author Spotlight: Advancements in X-ray CT Tool Chain for Tree Core Analysis
Published on: September 22, 2023
Preclinical validation of automated dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and computed tomography-based body composition
Joke Devriese1, Laurence Beels, Christophe Van De Wiele
1Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Kulak, KU Leuven campus Kortrijk, Kortrijk, Belgium - Hans.Pottel@kuleuven-kulak.be.
Background:
The aim of this study was to determine and validate a set of Hounsfield unit (HU) ranges to segment computed tomography (CT) images into tissue types and to test the validity of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) tissue segmentation on pure, unmixed porcine tissues.
Methods:
This preclinical prospective study was approved by the local ethical committee. Different quantities of porcine bone tissue (BT), lean tissue (LT) and adipose tissue (AT) were scanned using DXA and CT. Tissue type segmentation in DXA was performed via the standard clinical protocol and in CT through different sets of HU ranges. Percent coefficients of variation (%CV) were used to assess precision while % differences of observed masses were tested against zero using the Wilcoxon signed-rank Test.
Results:
Total mass DXA measurements differ little but significantly (P=0.016) from true mass, while total mass CT measurements based on literature values show non-significant (P=0.69) differences of 1.7% and 2.0%. BT mass estimates with DXA differed more from true mass (median -78.2 to -75.8%) than other tissue types (median -11.3 to -8.1%). Tissue mass estimates with CT and literature HU ranges showed small differences from true mass for every tissue type (median -10.4 to 8.8%).
Conclusion:
The most suited method for automated tissue segmentation is CT and can become a valuable tool in quantitative nuclear medicine.
Related Concept Videos
Imaging Studies III: Computed Tomography
Computed Tomography
The technique was invented in the 1970s and is based on the principle that as X-rays pass through the body, they are absorbed or reflected at different levels. In the technique, a patient lies on a motorized platform while a computerized axial tomography (CAT) scanner rotates...
Composite Bodies
Composite bodies have widespread applications in mechanical engineering, from automobiles to aircraft to rockets. For example, an automobile wheel comprises...
Composition of Body Fluids
Kinetic Energy for a Rigid Body
X-ray Crystallography
Diffraction
Diffraction is the change in the direction of travel experienced by an electromagnetic wave when it encounters a physical barrier whose dimensions are comparable to those of the wavelength of the light. X-rays are electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths about as long as the distance between neighboring...

