The DEXA Body Composition Scan provides information on your body’s fat tissue, muscle mass, and bone density. There are two components to the scan (not everyone will need both components):
At your follow-up appointment results will be reviewed and plan of care discussed, you will be given a printout with percentages and images of the data obtained that you can keep as a reference.
After measuring your height and weight, you will be escorted to the scanning table and asked to lie down and get comfortable. The scanning arm extends across the table, over your body, and works by sending a low dose x-ray beam that allows both soft tissue and bone measurements. The scan is painless and takes about 30 minutes to complete both parts of the study.
Make sure you are well hydrated and do not wear anything metal (zippers, metal snaps, etc) on the day of your test.
The body composition measurements provide individualized information on lean mass and body fat, including where your body fat is concentrated. Abdominal cavity fat, or visceral fat, is a risk factor for cancer, diabetes, heart disease and dementia.
Bone density information results compare your findings to someone your age (Z-score) and to a healthy 30-year-old of the same sex (T-score). This allows prediction of potential fracture risk and provides valuable information for you and your doctor to discuss prevention, diagnosis and potential treatment of osteoporosis through risk factor modification and when indicated, medication.