Can bone density scans help assess cardiovascular risk? More details needed in news release

Does the news release adequately discuss the costs of the intervention?

Not Satisfactory

The cost of a bone density scan is not mentioned and this is an important omission. Cardiovascular risk is currently assessed based on the epidemiological data from the Framingham Heart Study. The Framingham Cardiovascular Risk Calculator is based on these data and provides an easily obtained validated 10-year risk assessment. The only tests required are a blood test for total and HDL cholesterol (at a cost of $30-$40).

The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends screening for the presence of osteoporosis in women over age 65 years based on a cost-benefit assessment for that disorder. That means the cost of the screening is offset by the clinical benefits obtained. The use of a bone density scan to identify cardiovascular disease, especially in women under the age of 65 specifically for the diagnosis of osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease is a separate issue. While the cost of a bone densit scan is roughly $150-250 and still relatively low compared to other type of scans, it exceeds the cost of a total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol blood test. Unless and until the use of a bone density scan has been shown to provide more precise information, the cost could be viewed as excessive.

Does the news release adequately quantify the benefits of the treatment/test/product/procedure?

Not Satisfactory

The proposed benefit is to find people at increased risk of heart disease with a bone density scan and treat them.

One of the authors is quoted:

“We found that that the presence of calcifications increased the likelihood of having cardiovascular disease such as heart attacks, and even the likelihood of cardiovascular deaths and mortality in general.”

However, the release doesn’t provide numbers that put the presumed benefit in context.

Does the news release adequately explain/quantify the harms of the intervention?

Not Satisfactory

No harms were mentioned.

A bone density scan is a non-invasive and safe test, but the news release is silent on the issue of harms from false-positive or false-negative results — either of which could lead to over- or under-treatment.

Does the news release seem to grasp the quality of the evidence?

Not Satisfactory

The release does not provide an adequate amount of information to determine the quality of the evidence. The reader is told only that there were 1,000 older women (no defined age group), nothing is mentioned about their baseline risk factors and they were followed for 15 years for “the occurrence of cardiovascular disease,” which is not defined.

Importantly, the release does not explain how the information from the scan compares to that provided by already-recommended cardiovascular screenings, or whether it would lead to changes in treatment for anyone who is scanned.

Does the news release identify funding sources & disclose conflicts of interest?

Not Satisfactory

There are no details in the release about how the authors of this research may or may not be tied to the bone density testing industry.  But the published report makes it clear that they have ties to Hologic, which makes bone density testing machines:

Dr. Wilson is an employee of Hologic Inc. and reports personal fees, non-financial support and other from Hologic, Inc., during the conduct of the study; personal fees and other from Hologic, Inc., outside the submitted work; In addition, Dr. Wilson has multiple densitometer imaging and reporting patents which may be relevant, US and worldwide, both pending and issued owned by Hologic, Inc.

These are the kinds of financial ties that should always be disclosed in news releases.

Does the news release compare the new approach with existing alternatives?

Not Satisfactory

As we noted previously, the Framingham Cardiovascular Risk Calculator is commonly used to assess the 10-year risk of a cardiovascular event and guide related treatment. The release does not mention this tool or how the results of bone density scanning would compare or improve upon it.

Does the news release establish the availability of the treatment/test/product/procedure?

Not Satisfactory

The release notes that bone density scanning is routinely used to diagnose osteoporosis and presumably it is widely available. What is not clear is whether bone density scanning to determine the degree of aortic calcification is generally available.