Approaches for noninvasive bone quality assessment are of great clinical need, particularly in individuals that require close monitoring of disease progression. X‐ray measurements are standard approaches to assess bone quality; however, they have several disadvantages. Here, a nonionizing approach for noninvasive assessment of the second metacarpal bone based on near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy was investigated. Transcutaneous bone signal detection was experimentally confirmed with cadaveric hand data, and Monte Carlo modeling further indicated that 50% of the measured signals arise from bone. Spectral data were collected via a NIR fiber optic from the bone of individuals with osteogenesis imperfecta, a disease marked by frequent bone fractures and fragility. Multiple significant correlations were found between spectral parameters related to water, protein and fat, and standard bone quality parameters obtained by X‐ray measurements. The results from this preliminary study highlight the potential application of NIR spectroscopy for the noninvasive assessment of bone quality.

中文翻译：

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近红外光纤光谱在无创骨评估中的临床应用。

非侵入性骨质量评估方法非常需要临床，尤其是在需要密切监测疾病进展的个体中。X射线测量是评估骨质量的标准方法。但是，它们有几个缺点。在这里，研究了一种基于近红外（NIR）光谱的非电离方法，用于无创评估第二掌骨。尸体手部数据通过实验证实了经皮骨骼信号检测，并且蒙特卡洛模型进一步表明，所测量的信号中有50％来自骨骼。通过近红外光纤从成骨不全症患者的骨骼中收集光谱数据，这种疾病以频繁的骨折和脆性为特征。在与水有关的光谱参数之间发现了多个显着的相关性，蛋白质和脂肪，以及通过X射线测量获得的标准骨质量参数。这项初步研究的结果突显了近红外光谱技术在骨质量无创评估中的潜在应用。