Spatially offset Raman spectroscopy for in vivo bone strength prediction

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Spectroscopy
• Orthopedics

Background:

• Bone strength is a critical global health issue, necessitating advanced evaluation techniques.
• Current methods for assessing bone quality have limitations, creating a need for improved non-invasive approaches.
• Evaluating bone strength non-invasively is crucial for early detection and management of bone diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and validate a novel non-invasive method for predicting bone strength in vivo.
• To assess the capability of spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) in estimating bone properties.
• To correlate SORS predictions with established bone quality metrics.

Main Methods:

• Acquisition of Raman spectra transcutaneously from mouse tibiae across different ages (4-23 weeks).
• Application of Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) to analyze spectral data.
• Comparison of SORS-derived predictions with reference measurements from DXA, microCT, and biomechanical testing for areal bone mineral density (aBMD), volumetric bone mineralization density (vBMD), and maximum torque (MT).

Main Results:

• Significant correlations were achieved between SORS predictions and reference values for aBMD, vBMD, and MT.
• Demonstrated the ability of SORS to predict the biomechanical parameter maximum torque (MT) in vivo.
• Achieved prediction uncertainty for MT significantly smaller than the variability in the reference data.

Conclusions:

• Spatially offset Raman spectroscopy is a viable non-invasive technique for assessing bone strength in vivo.
• This method provides accurate predictions of key bone parameters, including biomechanical properties.
• SORS holds promise for advancing the non-invasive evaluation of bone quality and health.