Cardea Technology’s Bone Densitometry Blog

BoneStation is an enterprise class bone density reporting solution.  It makes bone densitometry practices more productive by streamlining the workflow of technologists, physicians and administrators.

The assessment for osteoporosis and fracture risk became more complicated when FRAX was introduced about ten years ago.  In addition to the DXA measurements, the patient’s medical history had to be considered when interpreting bone density scans.

FRAX is built into BoneStation’s web-based interface.  When using BoneStation, the DXA machine’s questionnaire is not used.  Instead BoneStation’s online questionnaire is used and BoneStation calculates a FRAX score.

This provides many advantages over using the DXA for FRAX.

• Technologists and physicians can view and/or modify the questionnaire from anywhere as long as they have access to BoneStation.
• The FRAX score appears on the report along with the indicated risk factors (from the questionnaire).
• The questionnaire is readily available to the reading physician during review.  The reading physician can even modify the questionnaire.  The FRAX score generated by BoneStation will be adjusted.  There is no need to have the technologist modify the questionnaire at the DXA and regenerate the FRAX score.
• Questionnaire’s are saved with each bone density report and can be recalled at any later time.
• BoneStation has the ability to provide a warning if a questionnaire has not been filled out for a patient.

The workflow for questionnaires is straight-forward in BoneStation.

• The technologist typically fills out the questionnaire (but this is not always the case).  The questionnaire is stored in a Questionnaire Queue and assigned to the scans when they are transmitted to BoneStation.
• During review, the reading physician has access to the questionnaire and can even modify answers on the questionnaire.
• When the reading physician finalizes the study, the questionnaire is saved in BoneStation along with the report.
• Both the report and questionnaire are available to be recalled at a later time.

Click here for more about bone density imaging workflow.

Next time the patient has a bone density test, answers from the prior questionnaire pre-populate the new questionnaire that is used for the visit.

BoneStation includes a standard questionnaire, which is sufficient for FRAX.  Questionnaires may be customized for a bone density practice.

An online questionnaire has an additional advantage in research environments.  With all data being stored centrally in BoneStation, it is easy to perform data mining.