REMS: Short-Term Precision and Repeatability

“Short-Term Precision and Repeatability of Radiofrequency Echographic Multi Spectrometry (REMS) on Lumbar Spine and Proximal Femur: An In Vivo Study”

Carmelo Messina, Salvatore Gitto, Roberta Colombo, Stefano Fusco, Giada Guagliardo, Mattia Piazza, Jacopo Carlo Poli, Domenico Albano and Luca Maria Sconfienza

IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Galeazzi, Via Cristina Belgioioso, 173, 20157 Milan, Italy;
Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Mangiagalli, 31, 20133 Milan, Italy
Scuola di Specializzazione in Radiodiagnostica, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Festa del Perdono, 7, 20122 Milan, Italy

Highlight:

A study titled ” Precision and Repeatability of Radiofrequency Echographic Multi Spectrometry (REMS) on Lumbar Spine and Proximal Femur: An In Vivo Study,” was conducted by Professors C. Messina and L. M. Sconfienza of the radiology operating units of IRCSS Galeazzi Hospital in Milan, Italy, to evaluate the effect of increasing BMI on the precision values of REMS technology.

Short-term precision (intra-operator) and repeatability (inter-operator) of REMS were measured at the level of the lumbar spine and proximal femur (neck) in a cohort of subjects aged 30-80 years stratified according to BMI. Both precision and repeatability, expressed as root-mean-square coefficient of variation (RMS-CV) and least significant change (LSC) were obtained using data from two consecutive REMS acquisitions by the same operator or two different operators, respectively. Optimal values for intra-operator precision and inter-operator repeatability were found on both sites, which were superior to those typically documented with DXA when the characteristics of the study groups are analogous to those of the present study. In addition, due to its inherent technological features, REMS technology shows a superior ability compared to DXA in dealing with physical interferences induced by fat tissues.