Bone mineral density analysis method, bone mineral density analysis apparatus, and recording medium

摘要

From radiation images obtained by driving radiation tube with a plurality of tube voltages, including a normal tube voltage, a density gradient with respect to at least two sections of a reference substance having different radiation transmission characteristics is obtained for each of the plurality of tube voltages prior to obtaining a bone mineral density. If a radiation image captured for obtaining a bone mineral density is determined to have been captured under a tube voltage other than the normal tube voltage, an image signal representing the image and/or a bone mineral density analysis result is corrected so as to correspond to that which should have been obtained if the image had been captured under the normal tube voltage based on the relationship between the density gradient in the image and the density gradient in the radiation image captured under the normal tube voltage.

主权项

1. A bone mineral density analysis method implemented by a bone mineral analysis system, the method comprising the steps of:
projecting radiation generated from a radiation tube simultaneously onto an analysis target bone portion and a reference substance having a plurality of sections with different radiation transmission characteristics; obtaining a radiation image representing the bone portion and the reference substance by detecting radiation transmitted through the bone portion and the reference substance with a radiation detecting body; obtaining a bone mineral density of the bone portion based on a radiation transmission characteristic of a section of the reference substance that indicates the same density as that of the analysis target bone portion in the radiation image; sequentially changing an image capturing condition to a plurality of different states, including a normal state, and obtaining a radiation image of the reference substance under each state prior to obtaining the bone mineral density; obtaining a density gradient with respect to at least two sections of the reference substance having different radiation transmission characteristics for each of the plurality of different states of the image capturing condition from the radiation images of the reference substance; and correcting, if the radiation image captured for obtaining the bone mineral density is determined to have been captured under a state other than the normal state from a density gradient in the image, an image signal representing the image and/or a bone mineral density analysis result so as to correspond to that which should have been obtained if the image had been captured under the normal state based on the relationship between the density gradient in the image and the density gradient in the radiation image captured under the normal state.