Bone density assessment in a tertiary paediatric centre over 13 years: Referral patterns and limitations

Abstract

Aim This study aims to examine the referral practices for the Royal Children's Hospital (RCH) bone density service over the past 13 years and to demonstrate referral patterns and possible limitations to accessing paediatric bone densitometry. Methods All patients attending the RCH Healthy Bones Unit for bone densitometry from 1 July 1999 to 30 June 2012, aged under 18 years of age, were included. Densitometry results were downloaded directly from the Hologic scanner into an Excel document. However, the referring unit and indication for referral were collected manually from either the referral card or the hospital's scanned medical records system. Results A total of 5767 bone densitometry sca..