Anyone familiar with DEXA scans?

[chlobo]

My mom has osteoporosis and has had it for a long time. Twice now I've asked my GP for a DEXA scan and twice she has said "its too soon" (I'm 56). What does that even mean?

For those familiar, is there a valid reason to wait rather than get a baseline now? Is this an issue where the insurance company won't cover it because of some stupid rule?

[NCGrandma]

The US Preventive Services Task Force (whose recommendations often influence what insurance will cover and when) recommends routine screening for osteoporosis starting at age 65 *BUT* at younger ages for women at higher risk.

I have no idea about what might be involved in getting insurance coverage before age 65 but it’s definitely worth asking about. And your PCP's response makes me wonder whether she is fully aware of your family history as well as your concerns.

As you probably know, the DEXA scan itself is very straightforward (and a lot faster than it used to be).


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[bisous]

Interesting. I've only heard of DEXA scans in term of figuring out muscle and fat percentages. I follow an influencer on instagram that has been working to gain muscle and she uses periodic DEXA scans for that. She's like 31 so clearly younger people ARE getting scanned. Maybe it is an insurance coverage thing? At least know that you can pay for them OOP if that's something you're interested in. I think the influencer mentioned how much she paid and it was not that much! Not at all like the cost of an OOP MRI for example.

[chlobo]

The US Preventive Services Task Force (whose recommendations often influence what insurance will cover and when) recommends routine screening for osteoporosis starting at age 65 *BUT* at younger ages for women at higher risk.

I have no idea about what might be involved in getting insurance coverage before age 65 but it’s definitely worth asking about. And your PCP's response makes me wonder whether she is fully aware of your family history as well as your concerns.

As you probably know, the DEXA scan itself is very straightforward (and a lot faster than it used to be).


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She knows my history as we discussed it both times we talked. She said that family history isn't as big an influencer as some other factors, which clearly she doesn't think I have. She did say I could get it around age 60. I have decent insurance at the moment and don't need a referral so they might cover it. But I will look into the self-pay option as well.

[chlobo]

Interesting. I've only heard of DEXA scans in term of figuring out muscle and fat percentages. I follow an influencer on instagram that has been working to gain muscle and she uses periodic DEXA scans for that. She's like 31 so clearly younger people ARE getting scanned. Maybe it is an insurance coverage thing? At least know that you can pay for them OOP if that's something you're interested in. I think the influencer mentioned how much she paid and it was not that much! Not at all like the cost of an OOP MRI for example.

I read something about this recently. However, it seems like you could buy a $100 scale and it would give you a general ballpark without having to do repeated scans.

[Jeanne]

My 85 y/o mother has Osteo and is hunched over. My primary wrote me a Dexa script because she wants a baseline. I'm 54.

[gymnbomb]

Interesting. I've only heard of DEXA scans in term of figuring out muscle and fat percentages. I follow an influencer on instagram that has been working to gain muscle and she uses periodic DEXA scans for that. She's like 31 so clearly younger people ARE getting scanned. Maybe it is an insurance coverage thing? At least know that you can pay for them OOP if that's something you're interested in. I think the influencer mentioned how much she paid and it was not that much! Not at all like the cost of an OOP MRI for example.

They are used both for analyzing bone density and for assessing body composition. It is the gold standard method for assessing body composition, but there is almost never a need for that level of precision. There are many other cheaper, easier methods to assess body composition for fitness tracking purposes that are more easily accessible. Since I've been involved in research in the field as both a researcher and a subject I've had it done a couple of times and worked on projects where we used it to measure body composition, but it isn't something a random person will have done for that reason. The primary medical use that would be covered by insurance would be bone density assessment.

[JustMe]

So, I had a Dexa about 2 years ago at 53 and was diagnosed with osteoporosis . There are many conflicting opinions about to Dexa or not in your 50s. Some feel they are not accurate. Others feel that medication is not indicated before a certain age , especially if you haven't fractured (which is part of why some dont advise a Dexa in the 50s_, while others dispute this. I have researched this and gone in circles about what to do about my osteoporosis (I write this because part of deciding a Dexa could be what you may want or not want to do if your numbers indicate osteoporosis). I am on HRT as a result (after a lot of consultation with many drs) and do a couple of other things. Currently trying to work on adding strength training, as I only walked for exercise before, but I have decided that for now at my age the osteoporosis meds (other than taking HRT) are not for me. There is also another type of scan not covered by insurance called something like Echo light that is only available a handful of locations...some feel this is my accurate than Dexa. Now that I have written this all out, I am glad I got the Dexa as a warning that I was losing bone, as I would not have started HRT without it.

I know this is a little disjointed, but I have seriously gone down a rabbit hole figuring out what to do in my situation. You can literally read articles saying a particular things/tx is highly indicated and another saying it is contraindicated.

ETA: mine was covered by my insurance when I had it at 53. If you want t Dexa I would push your dr on it, especially given your family hx. You can call your insurance to see if its covered...and find another dr if yours wont order it.

[bisous]

They are used both for analyzing bone density and for assessing body composition. It is the gold standard method for assessing body composition, but there is almost never a need for that level of precision. There are many other cheaper, easier methods to assess body composition for fitness tracking purposes that are more easily accessible. Since I've been involved in research in the field as both a researcher and a subject I've had it done a couple of times and worked on projects where we used it to measure body composition, but it isn't something a random person will have done for that reason. The primary medical use that would be covered by insurance would be bone density assessment.

Interesting. It was the head of the fitness platform that I use that recommended it and I know several of the followers have now regularly started using the scans to track progress.

[chlobo]

So, I had a Dexa about 2 years ago at 53 and was diagnosed with osteoporosis . There are many conflicting opinions about to Dexa or not in your 50s. Some feel they are not accurate. Others feel that medication is not indicated before a certain age , especially if you haven't fractured (which is part of why some dont advise a Dexa in the 50s_, while others dispute this. I have researched this and gone in circles about what to do about my osteoporosis (I write this because part of deciding a Dexa could be what you may want or not want to do if your numbers indicate osteoporosis). I am on HRT as a result (after a lot of consultation with many drs) and do a couple of other things. Currently trying to work on adding strength training, as I only walked for exercise before, but I have decided that for now at my age the osteoporosis meds (other than taking HRT) are not for me. There is also another type of scan not covered by insurance called something like Echo light that is only available a handful of locations...some feel this is my accurate than Dexa. Now that I have written this all out, I am glad I got the Dexa as a warning that I was losing bone, as I would not have started HRT without it.

I know this is a little disjointed, but I have seriously gone down a rabbit hole figuring out what to do in my situation. You can literally read articles saying a particular things/tx is highly indicated and another saying it is contraindicated.

ETA: mine was covered by my insurance when I had it at 53. If you want t Dexa I would push your dr on it, especially given your family hx. You can call your insurance to see if its covered...and find another dr if yours wont order it.

It's interesting what you say about medication because my doctor seemed very negative about the side effects of the various drugs used to treat osteoporosis and it made me wonder if one of the reasons she wanted me to hold off is that she doesn't think the treatment is good for people my age. At least that was the impression I got. I've also recently read something about DEXA not necessarily being a definitive test but I can't remember where I saw that.

That said, you can do other things like take bone supporting supplements, HRT and strength training and it would be good to know how the bone density changes over time and if interventions slow the decline.