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Article: Bone Mineral Density Tests Are Not Useful for Everyone.
- Article from:
- OB GYN News
- Article date:
- December 15, 2000
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2000 International Medical News Group. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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ANAHEIM, CALIF. -- Order a bone mineral density test only if it's expected to provide useful information and the results will be acted upon, Dr. Gail Greendale advised at a meeting on controversies in women's health sponsored by the University of California, Los Angeles.
For example, if a woman is going to base her decision to start HRT on the results of her bone mineral density test, it is useful to get one, said Dr. Greendale, research director of the Iris Cantor--UCLA Women's Health Center in Los Angeles.
But if the woman plans on taking HRT anyway, then the information is not helpful because it does not impact decision making. "In that case, I would ...