Vim & Vigor - Fall 2010 - (Page 52)

Marcia Cedars, RTRM, clinical manager at the Trio Breast Center at Parker Adventist Hospital, and Cathy Jani, M.T., a DEXA patient and lab supervisor at Parker Adventist Hospital Better Bones The inside story on DEXA scans and your bones By Suzy DeverS S he never felt it happening. At age 45, after receiving a DEXA bone scan, Cathy Jani’s doctor told her she had early bone loss, a precursor to osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is a serious bone condition characterized by low bone mass and structural deterioration of the bone tissue. Osteoporosis is responsible for more than 1.5 million bone fractures a year, according to the National Institutes of Health. In Jani’s case, a hysterectomy triggered early menopause, robbing her of the protective effects of estrogen. “I was surprised that having a hysterectomy could affect my bones. Over the past seven years, I’ve been on medication and I’ve had a DEXA scan to measure my bone density every two years,” says Jani, whose last scan at Parker Adventist Hospital confirmed that her bone density was stable. in a given section of bone. (DEXA is short for dualenergy X-ray absorptiometry, which is now the standard for measuring bone density.) According to “The Surgeon General’s Report on Bone Health and Osteoporosis,” testing bone density is the surest way to check for bone health. DEXA scans are available at Littleton, Parker and Porter Adventist Hospitals in their breast centers. Marcia Cedars, RTRM, clinical manager of the Trio Breast Center, says the scans are offered at the breast centers as an added convenience for women who like to schedule the 15-minute scan at the same time as their mammograms. Preliminary scan results are printed out on the spot in most instances, so the technologist can review the results with the patient and provide a copy of the scans. A full report is then faxed to the physician within a couple of days. Quick and convenient A DEXA scan is an enhanced form of X-ray technology that measures the level of calcium and minerals the estrogen connection If you’re a postmenopausal woman, your chances of developing osteoporosis are greater because estrogen protects your bones. Half of all women over age 50 will 52 Vim & Vigor • Fa ll 2 010 

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Fall 2010

Vim &_Vigor - Fall 2010
Contents
Nurturing Health
For Your Health
Network of Care
Study Skills
What’s in Your Medicine Cabinet?
See the Future
The Female Factor
Take a Bite Out of Stress
Starring Role
Shouldering the Pain
Train Your Brain
What Now?
Choose Your Own Adventure
Vein Pain
The Ultimate Gift
Better Bones
Relatively Speaking
Joint Ventures

Vim & Vigor - Fall 2010

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