Fracture incidence and diagnostic roentgen in alcoholics

The records of 107 chronic alcoholics were researched for the number of roentgen diagnostic procedures undertaken during the last few decades. It was demonstrated that fractures were about four times as common in alcoholics as in a series of age-matched random controls but there was the same proportion of fractures indicating bone fragility. Skull roentgen examinations and gastro-duodenal examinations were also common. Alcoholics seem to require almost twice the amount of roentgen diagnostic work as the population in general.