Characterisation of Trabecular Bone Structure - Skeletal Aging and Osteoporosis: Biomechanics and Mechanobiology - page 34

Fig. 1 X-ray image of a
sagittal slice from the
proximal femur, which shows
the complex patterns formed
by trabeculae
[ 1 , 70 ]. In males, age-related bone loss occurs through gradual thinning of tra-
beculae, where the connectivity of the structure is largely intact but overall the
structure has a reduced capacity to withstand load [ 1 , 22 , 101 ]. Similar findings
have also been reported in micro-CT studies, which show that the bias in the
estimation of the magnitude of trabecular dimensions using histological sections
does not mask relative differences between groups [ 99 ].
2 Skeletal Distribution of Trabecular Bone: What and Where
to Sample
Trabecular bone is found at the end of the medullary cavities of hollow long bones
throughout the skeleton (Fig. 1 ). It forms a trabecular network, of interconnected
rod-like and plate-like structures, which are found in greater or lesser proportion
depending on the skeletal site [ 4 , 85 ]. Interestingly, the skeletal sites with the
greatest volume of trabecular bone are, in general, the sites where the majority of
osteoporotic or fragility fractures occur [ 52 , 53 ]. Hence, there has been and con-
tinues to be a strong focus on understanding the contribution of trabecular bone to
mechanical strength of the bone as an organ and in how therapeutic intervention
prevents loss of mechanical integrity [ 6 , 10 , 71 , 94 ].