Analysis of leg bone lengths from whole-body dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in the UK biobank.

OBJECTIVES

To calculate the distributions of leg bone lengths (as measured from dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry [DXA] images) and their relationship with height. Estimating human height from long bone measurements is widely used in forensic and biological anthropology.

METHODS

An automated system was developed to find the outlines of the femur and tibia in DXA images from the UK Biobank. These were used to measure the length of the bones. Images with implants, severe abnormalities, or missing data were excluded. Relationships between lengths and with height were estimated using linear regression.

RESULTS

Of the 73 405 available DXA images, we successfully measured both femurs and tibia in 66 730 cases (91%). The lengths of femurs and tibias for males and females each show normal distributions, with left and right being very similar. The mean absolute difference between measurements at 2 time points was below 1.8 mm (femur), 2.3 mm (tibia), showing the system is repeatable. Linear regression gives the relationships between individual bone lengths and between them and height.

CONCLUSIONS

The developed software system and the resulting analysis provide promising insights into bone geometry using DXA imaging, enabling large-scale, precise bone measurements. These models are relevant for predicting height, a subject of interest in archaeology and forensic science.

ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: This is the largest study of the distributions of leg bone lengths and their relationship to height that we are aware of.