A new piece of equipment at Marion General Hospital can help people know if their bones are getting weak — potentially preempting a devastating hip break or other fracture.
Brooke McCain, the hospital's radiology supervisor, said they're excited to be able to offer the bone density scans to patients.
The hospital got the machine in December and is just beginning to promote it, but McCain said they're already seeing good use of it.
Patients lay on a bed, and a DEXA (Dual Energy X-ray Absorpitometry) scanner passes over them, taking measurements at the spine and hip. It uses a low-dose X-ray that produces less radiation than you would get from four hours in the sun, McCain said.
The device gives patients a T score, which tells them how likely they are to break a bone in a fall based on their bone density. The whole process takes less than 10 minutes, McCain said.
Medicare covers the scans every two years for women 65 and older and after 70 for men.
James Turnage, the regional radiology director for Forrest General Hospital, which operates Marion General and other smaller hospitals in the Pine Belt, said others who may need a bone density scan include people with thyroid problems, smokers, alcoholics or prostate cancer -- all things that can cause bones to deteriorate.
Treatment for osteoporosis can include calcium therapy or a once-a-year shot of Reclast.
Turnage said the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends the scan because if problems are caught before a hip is broken, for example, it saves the government a lot of money in treatment costs.
McCain said the hospital did a screening test at Heritage Festival for bone density and got a positive reaction, leading them to start considering get a bone density scanner so they could offer the diagnostic test. She said the hospital has already been offering calcium therapy and this helps people, who are often elderly, get tested in Columbia rather than having to travel to Hattiesburg.
The device is available Monday through Friday, and getting the scan requires a physician's order. McCain said she encourages people to ask their doctor during their OB-GYN visit or annual Healthy You checkup if they need a bone density scan. All insurances cover the exam, and it's not expensive even if you were paying for it yourself, McCain said.
